Travels of the Trifecta!
by Shinneth
Summary: Post-DP100, Paul and Reggie are issued a challenge by their father, but only after they meet a specific criteria. After all these years, will they finally earn his respect? XVIX: The hiatus ends! Witness the long-awaited battle of Paul vs Candice! Also: Conway vs Gardenia! Battles that put Best Wishes' battles to shame, guaranteed!
1. Brotherly Snubs!

**( Notes:**

**Not sure where this came from. I just had a strong desire to write Paul's side of the story for once and give him something of a basis for his crappy attitude. Those of you in the fandom who have mused about possibilities of Paul's backstory due to certain episodes that (as of this writing) have yet to air in the United States - this should be a familiar theory for you. Those who aren't following Japan should be warned that there are spoilers in this fanfic, which follows soon after DP100. I haven't seen anyone else really build on it, so I decided to give it a try. I'm considering this a placeholder for now. I might or might not update it with future adventures. Bear in mind I'm trying to keep this English consistent, so I can't delve into things like Sinnoh's Battle Frontier (if it'll even be in Sinnoh for the anime) until Platinum's ready to come out in English. Still, this is a fun little project and I'm enjoying it. Paul's going to be the primary focus of this story, so don't expect too much of Ash & Co. appearances until the canon dictates it. Later on the focus may even shift away from Paul a bit, who knows!**

**Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy the story, and... I hope I stuck close enough to the canon as possible. Feel free to share your thoughts! )

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**

"Oh, Paul! I didn't expect a call from you so soon, bro."

Paul averted his gaze, giving no prompt response.

"It's not like you to call more than once a month," remarked the young man on the video-enhanced phone system; obviously the elder brother, Reggie. He'd come to expect these avoidant gestures from Paul, so he simply continued to extend his salutation. After all, it _was_ a pleasant surprise to be able to speak with him not long after the previous call. "But three times?" Reggie smirked. "Are you trying to break a record or what?"

Paul huffed at the idea of such an endeavor. It couldn't be helped, in his mind. Originally, having recently won a Relic Badge from Fantina of Hearthome City, Paul was en route to Canalave City, where he planned to cross back into Eterna City first (traveling to Canalave required quite a bit of backtracking) and finally face its Gym Leader, Gardenia, whom he passed over when he originally traversed through the town. Ash and his friends happened to be right there in the same place with the same intent as he, and after a sufferable encounter with them from the then-recent visit to Oreburgh City, Paul wished to spare himself the agony and save the gym battle for a later time. Being native to Sinnoh, Paul knew he would eventually return to Eterna City. If it meant sparing him from Ash's insufferable nature, Paul figured it was worth it to put his plans on hold.

"Spare me," Paul spat. "I only called you again that time because I changed my mind about my team formation just before my gym battle was scheduled. I was going to give Electabuzz a workout in a Gym where the typing was not to his advantage, but after actually _meeting_ that psycho they call a Gym Leader, I decided to wipe the floor with her. That's why I asked you to send Magmar to me instead."

Reggie gave his younger brother a tired smile. "What, did she look at you the wrong way? You really should find better ways to vent your frustrations, bro."

Paul's eyebrow twitched, remembering his recent encounter with Eterna City's Gym Leader. "She's a complete nutjob. I'm not exaggerating. The second she laid eyes on Torterra, she wouldn't let go. She was borderline _enamored_, Reggie. Apparently she acts like this around all Grass-type Pokémon."

"Heh, yeah," Reggie chuckled. "That's what they say about her. She's really got a strong devotion to Grass Pokémon."

"It would've been nice if you warned me about that before I decided to bring Torterra out," Paul said; his tone scathing. "That's not the kind of behavior I want to expose my Starter to. Anyway, like I said, she needed to be taught a lesson. And there's no better way to teach that lesson than to bring about _fire_ to her precious grass."

The way Paul worded that last sentence concerned Reggie a bit, but he put it aside for the moment. "So, how did you do?"

Paul responded by holding up the Forest Badge for his brother to see. "Need you ask?"

Reggie simply smiled and shook his head. "You weren't _too_ brutal on her, were you?"

"You know I don't concern myself with holding back," Paul answered with a shrug. "After the battle, I only ended up burning maybe a quarter of her gym field. Maybe I would have burned the rest of it, but I was eager to get out of that city as soon as possible, if only to get _her_ out of my hair."

"Still undisciplined as always," Reggie said with a sigh. "You really need to stop abusing the power you have in your reputation. If Dad were here, he'd—"

"He's not here," Paul interrupted. "Don't waste my time with your What-Ifs, Reggie. Deal with your anguish over him on your own time; I'm calling you now because I'm on my way to Canalave City; the one with the Steel-typed Gym. I want Electabuzz back, and I'm sending you Magmar in exchange again."

Reggie frowned briefly at being cut off, but nodded. "No problem. So you're using Electabuzz against Byron, huh?"

"Doubtful," replied Paul. "There isn't much of a challenge to be had in a Steel-type Gym for Electabuzz. But I'll likely use him by the time I reach Snowpoint City, and that Gym would be far too simple for Magmar, and the same goes for Canalave. Might as well get this exchange over with; then I can make up for the high volume of calls this month by not contacting you at all for the next three months." A wicked smirk formed on his face briefly as he said that.

"Not funny," Reggie said, looking serious. "You know how dangerous the route to Snowpoint can be. If I don't hear from you, I'll start worrying."

Paul rolled his eyes as he took out his Pokéball containing Magmar, and began the transfer process; his brother had done the same for Electabuzz. "If I had known her at all before she died, I'd say you're an exact duplicate of mother, Reggie. At least… you're acting like one, I guess. Point is, stop your worrying and nagging. I have three regions' worth of experience under my belt; I'll be fine."

Reggie smiled sadly, looking down. "Dad did say that to me once…"

"I don't care what _he_ has to say," Paul snapped. "Drop it."

The elder brother blinked, looking confused. "You were the one who brought it up… anyway, it's not because I'm like Mom that I worry, Paul. It's because you're my little brother, like it or not. And you'll never admit it, but you've got a lot of growing up to do, and with Dad not being around, it's my job to look out for you. Even if it's only through monthly telephone calls," he said with a small laugh.

Paul merely grunted in response as they waited for the transfer to complete. After a period of awkward silence, the young trainer decided to change the subject. "Just to be safe, Byron isn't a Steel-obsessed freak, is he?"

"Nah, he's pretty level-headed," Reggie assured him. "He's Roark's father, after all. Even so, you don't have any Steel-type Pokémon for him to obsess over anyway, right?"

"Good point," Paul conceded. "Gardenia may or may not have left mental scars from our encounter, so don't be surprised if I ask you about the rest of the Gym Leaders I've yet to face."

"Poor guy," Reggie chided. "All of that exposure to love might've been good for you, Paul."

Paul glared at the screen. "Don't make me nauseous." A Pokéball popped out of the transfer slot just in with a chime, confirming the exchange had been completed. "_Finally_," Paul growled, snatching the ball and putting it in his bag with the others.

"So, just out of curiosity, which Pokémon are you planning to use against Byron?" Reggie asked. "If I'm not going to hear from you again in a while, at least let me imagine how your future battles are going to play out."

"You must be bored out of your mind in that little petting zoo of yours," Paul said, purely in a tone of mockery. "If you _must_ know, I'm planning to use Ursaring, Weavile, and Honchkrow."

Reggie's eyes widened. "You're really serious about this intensive training. All of them have type disadvantages!"

"Oh, really? I had _no_ idea," Paul said sarcastically. "The true path to strength has no easy twists and turns. But this has carried on long enough. I need to get going. I'll call again… when I feel like it; understood?"

"That's how it's always been with you," Reggie said with a sigh, looking conflicted as Paul was loading on his gear and getting ready to set out.

"… wait."

This phone call was already way too long and drawn-out for Paul's liking; the added delays were beginning to aggravate him. "What is it? Make it quick."

Reggie looked worried; unsure that he should be telling his brother this. But he didn't have much time to debate the best course of action in his head, for he knew how impatient Paul tended to be. "I've… been bringing up Dad for a reason, Paul."

"Should I care?" Paul asked, cold as stone.

"Yes, you should," Reggie sternly responded. "He sent a letter to me and it arrived just the other day ago. I'm sending you a copy right now." And just as he said it, lights were blinking all about the machine as another transfer began.

Paul was taken aback by this, truth be told. It had been ages since Paul's father last made contact with his sons, but Paul was quick to replace the shock with anger. "What do you think you're doing?! I have no interest in what the old man has to say!"

"He mentions you," Reggie said with a smile. "I think you should read it. He's on the hunt for another Legendary Pokémon; one much stronger than the last few he acquired. He says he's getting close, and… when he captures it, he's inviting me to come over and battle with him."

The words struck Paul like a bolt of lightning. "You mean an…"

"… official battle?" Reggie finished for him. "Yes. He's giving me another chance to earn the last piece to my puzzle. Though it won't be the final piece for long," he said with a laugh.

Paul blinked a few times, looking very disgruntled. "What are you talking about?"

"According to him, a new Battle Frontier is due to open up soon. So whether or not you win the Sinnoh League, you should consider giving the Battle Frontier a shot afterwards. Dad says if you earn all of the Medals there, he just might consider giving you a shot at his Symbol." Reggie smirked. "Now think about that, if you will. What if we could both finally defeat our old man, bro?"

Paul's face was blank for a moment, as if he was seriously thinking about that hypothetical outcome. But soon after, he frowned. "And you think you actually have a shot at beating him this time?"

"Not really," Reggie said, feeling humbled when he thought realistically about his chances. "The Pokémon he's after will be anything but a pushover. I'll have to bring my A-Game on when I see him, so… I'll have to dedicate some of my time to train, meaning I might not be available the next time you call me."

"Because… by that time, you'll probably be in Kanto, right?"

Reggie nodded. "Right. I'll have to leave the Pokémon under the care of someone trustworthy while I'm gone… probably Maylene."

"_Maylene?_" Paul echoed, raising an eyebrow. "Honestly, she barely qualifies as a Gym Leader, let alone a—"

"I'm sure she'll do a good job," Reggie assured. "And as you know, Dad is never in the same place twice, so…"

"… I'll have to await your calls, then," Paul finished. "Since there's no way of knowing where you'll be. At the very least, you'll know I'll primarily be at Canalave, Snowpoint, Pastoria, or Sunyshore City."

Reggie pondered for a moment. "Think we should invest in a set of PokéGears? "

"I'm not _that_ desperate for your calls," Paul grumbled. "I'll stick close by the Pokémon Centers, then, but really, don't feel obligated to call me. I'm not as fond of these conversations as you seem to believe. I can well live without them."

"Well, I could use that extra time to train," Reggie said, letting out a chuckle. "We'll see how it all turns out. Now, you're taking that letter, right?" By this point, the copy of the letter had fully transferred over to Paul's end.

"Fine," Paul conceded, roughly grabbing the paper, crunching it up, and tossing it in his bag. "I'll read it when I find a place to settle down for tonight. Happy?"

"Very," Reggie replied cheerfully, as if he meant to sound annoying to his little brother. "But… in all seriousness, best of luck in the League, Paul. I'll do everything I can to be there to support you when the Conference commences."

Paul looked away again, feeling uncomfortable for reasons unknown to him. "The next time you call, I'd better see a Brave Symbol in your hand. I don't care if that means you have to miss seeing me in the Conference; you need intensive training more than I need moral support."

"Gee, bro. That almost sounded like a threat," Reggie commented, smiling uncomfortably.

"I meant it," Paul clarified. "If you lose to him _again_, it'll be a lose-lose situation for me no matter what happens when I face the old man. Because even if I win and get his Symbol, I'll still have to be related to you – a _loser_ – after the fact. That's too embarrassing to stomach, frankly. I'll even bite the bullet and talk with him myself to get you disowned if it comes to that. That's something that would benefit everyone."

"You really need to think about what you're saying before you actually say it sometimes," Reggie scolded. He tried not to look offended (as it wasn't the first time he's heard this sentiment from Paul), but Paul's cocky expression on the other end was telling enough that Reggie didn't hold back on his emotions very well, either. "Mm… whatever. I'd better sign off. I'm going to start my training tonight if I can finish up my tasks quickly enough. Promise me you'll be careful, Paul."

For Paul, it was a victory to him when his words were scathing enough to affect his own older brother. Especially when it led to him actually working to strengthen his team as a result.

"I'll be fine. You just worry yourself with trying to make up for seven years' worth of failure to the old man," Paul instructed, acting as if _he_ were the elder brother for a moment. "And if you don't win his Symbol, don't bother trying to contact me again. Alright? If I don't see a Brave Symbol in your hand the next time you call me, I'm hanging up. _Goodnight_."

It was hard for Reggie to keep a smile up at this point. "Goodni—"

Paul switched off the video phone before Reggie finished his farewell. He turned around, reloaded his gear, and began to set off again. "What a waste of time," Paul growled under his breath to himself. "I could've reached Jubilife City by now."

He exited Floaroma Town's Pokémon Center and looked to the skies, seeing that the sun had not yet begun to set… but it was getting close to that time. Traversing through the caves at this hour that would eventually lead him to Jubilife City would be difficult and time-consuming, and Paul felt he had wasted too much time on the video phone with his brother as it was. Paul sighed, deciding for once to opt for convenience in order to stay on schedule. He dug into his bag and brought out a Pokéball, pressed the button and tossed it out.

"Honchkrow, standby!"

Out of the Pokéball came Paul's Honchkrow, instinctively posing for battle, but seeming surprised when it saw there was no battle for it to participate in. "Honch?" it squawked questioningly at its trainer.

"No, I didn't call you out for battle," Paul confirmed, sharp in tone. "You should know by now that I don't do this unless there's a serious emergency or we're running behind schedule; in this case, it's the latter. I planned to reach Jubilife City by sundown, but unforeseen circumstances now make this impossible to accomplish on foot. So you know what you need to do, right?"

Honchkrow nodded. "Krow, krow."

Paul nodded back to his Pokémon. "Since you've evolved, you should be able to handle my weight now. There's no excuse for you if you screw up. So, Honchkrow… use Fly!"

"Krooooowww!" Honchkrow called out as it indeed began to fly, and after getting adjusted to it, hovered at a level where Paul could reach his Pokémon, in order to hitch a ride by clinging to its leg.

After Paul securely latched on to Honchkrow's leg, he sternly looked at his hovering Pokémon. "We're set. Fly, Honchkrow! To Jubilife City!"

Honchkrow willingly obeyed its trainer, and despite having initial difficulty in managing Paul's added weight, it was able to take flight and stabilize at a reasonable altitude. Eventually, both Pokémon and trainer made it to Jubilife City just before the sun had fully set.

Instead of a compliment or a thank-you, Paul merely looked at Honchkrow with a studious expression before huffing out a "Return!"… Bringing Honchkrow back into its Pokéball. After revitalizing his team at Jubilife's Pokémon Center, Paul took up shelter in a nearby hotel for the night. He took a ground-level room and settled in his bed. Before going to sleep, Paul left the side-table lamp on amidst the darkness throughout the rest of the room. Paul dug into his bag and pulled out two things; a Pokéball and the crumpled-up letter Reggie sent to him.

Quiet and subtly, Paul released the Pokémon inside. "Torterra, standby."

This was the reason for getting a ground-level hotel room. At nearly seven-hundred pounds, Torterra would be hazardous on upper floors. Noticing the atmosphere, Torterra was quick to realize he was not called out for battle. He stared at Paul, wondering why he was called out at this time of night in such a peaceful atmosphere. "Torr…"

"Correct," said Paul. "We aren't training or battling. But since you're my Starter, Torterra, it's important you listen to what I'm about to say. I know you're concerned about Ash Ketchum's Grotle at present, but you have bigger things to worry about; believe me."

"Tor, Tor…" Torterra muttered as it inched closer towards Paul.

Paul showed Torterra the crumpled letter that he attempted to smoothen out a little. "Remember a long time ago, when I said I you were going to be part of a significant turning point in my life one day? This is it, Torterra. It's a letter from the old man himself."

"Terraaaah…" Torterra growled, apparently not fond of Paul's father itself. "Torterra!"

Paul glared at the letter, just imagining the scathing words he was about to read. "Normally I wouldn't care to read what he has to say, but Reggie said this is a special occasion." He looked up sharply at Torterra. "Don't interrupt me."

Torterra silently nodded, understanding the order.

"Let's see," Paul murmured, gazing at the letter and letting out a deep breath before reciting what was written before him:

_Salutations, boys. Both of you._

_It's been a while since I've last written to you, mainly because I finally accomplished my latest task: collecting the Regi trio – Regirock, Registeel, and Regice. At least, I thought I had accomplished the mission until I learned of a legend of the leader of the Regis, rumored to go by the name of "Regigigas". Upon my capture of this Pokémon, I would like the elder boy to join me at the Battle Pyramid for another chance to win my Brave Symbol. However, I have only a few clues as to where to find this Pokémon. Rest assured, I will contact you when the time comes. Consider this a generous offer, as I doubt my first kid has gotten any stronger since the last time we crossed paths. Nonetheless, a celebration will commence when I capture Regigigas, and there's no better celebration than to test the skills of my own flesh and blood. I wish for both of you to one day earn the right to be my sons, but that does not mean I will go easy on either of you._

_As for the little boy, I'm wishing you the best of luck in your pursuit of your own native region's championship. Show them no mercy; show them no trace of the weakling that I saw in you the last time we battled. You should know that I have been battling many trainers as of late in order to recruit new Frontier Brains for the nearly-completed Battle Frontier, Mk. II. Whether or not you win the League, boy, I urge you to conquer this new Battle Frontier and earn all five Medals after you are finished with your League competition. Should you succeed in conquering the new Frontier, I will grant you permission to battle me for your own Brave Symbol to have. But like your brother, you will have to defeat me cleanly in battle in order to earn the Symbol and my respect. Continue to show no mercy in every battle you have, but never forget about the importance of bonding with your Pokémon. Based on what the older boy's told me, you've been more than a little cruel in your tactics with raising Pokémon. Perhaps defeating you again will prove you wrong; we'll see. Irregardless, I look forward to battling with you again, boy. I want to see how you've progressed in your training, and hopefully I'll see that you've been doing it right. _

_Should either of you stumble upon information regarding Regigigas, send it to me immediately. The sooner I capture this Pokémon, the sooner the two of you shall have the battle of your lives. Boys, continue working your way to victory. Make our inevitable reunion count this time._

_Sincerely,_

_Pyramid King Brandon_

"Nothing out of the ordinary," Paul commented, glaring. "Just an extended version of what Reggie told me. I see he still has trouble with using our names… big surprise."

"Torrr," Torterra grumbled, sharing the same sentiments as its trainer.

Paul crumpled the paper up into a ball and attempted to carelessly toss it aside as pure rubbish, only it rebounded off the table and back into his bag. This led to further agitated grumbling by the scorned trainer. "It would be satisfactory to stick a fork in the old man and claim his Symbol." Both he and Torterra realized something at the same time: Paul was as bad about referring to Brandon as his father as Brandon was to referring to Paul and Reggie as his sons, or even by their given names.

"Terra, tor…" Torterra mumbled, looking concerned. It was a pity that he was so big that he couldn't get any closer to Paul, and would definitely break the bed should he try to climb upon it.

"You understand why I brought you out to hear this, right?" Paul asked his Starter Pokémon. Said Pokémon nodded quickly. "Right. You're going to be part of this battle when the time comes. You're the only one who knows just how insufferable the old man is. You're going to remember this letter, and you _will_ play a part in earning me the victory I deserve. I won't accept failure from you. Is that clear?"

Torterra nodded again, this time looking somewhat fearful.

Paul seemed disgusted that his own Starter, the one he considered the most ruthless on his team, has been oddly sentimental as of late. First for Grotle, now this… it was beginning to disturb him. "Even if you are my first Pokémon, you aren't getting special treatment, Torterra. Fail me this time, and you just might wind up like Chimchar in the near future."

Torterra's eyes widened at the thought of such a thing. It hadn't occurred to it that even it was as disposable as its comrades. "T-Tor…!"

"And since Ash already has a Grotle, I doubt he's going to get you on the rebound like he did for Chimchar," Paul reminded him. "Keep that in mind when we're able to fight the old man. And don't forget you're going to be participating in Snowpoint City's Gym Battle. You know what type that Gym will be, and you have your work cut out for you. Work hard and prove to me that you're going to take these future battles seriously so I know I can count on you when we face the old man."

Torterra resumed his 'business' look. "Torterra!"

Paul nodded. "That's the attitude you need. So stop worrying about everyone else's problems from now on and focus on our goal. You're my strongest Pokémon, Torterra. Set a positive example for the rest of the team."

Though doubtful, Torterra refused to show that in his gestures. "Terra!"

Paul looked down and closed his eyes. "So we're understood." Holding up the Pokéball, Paul proceeded to call his Pokémon back. "Torterra, return."

After putting Torterra away, Paul settled under the sheets of his bed and turned off the light. Though he lay still in the bed, his eyes were wide open. What was coming to him in the future was so overwhelming that he couldn't sleep… not that he would admit it.

He almost wanted to skip the Conference entirely and move straight on to the Battle Frontier, so he would be ready when his father was ready. … Almost. Paul knew not to leave any business unfinished, and he had spent years preparing for a return to his native region to take the championship after failing to do so in Kanto, Johto, and Hoenn. And in a way, he wanted to break Ash Ketchum's spirit as well. He wanted to outdo his older brother, and he wanted to completely emasculate his father.

Imagining the success did well enough to eventually lull Paul to sleep. But even in his sleep, real life continued to dominate his mind.

For all that Paul had to look forward to, he almost completely forgot about the Mine Badge; his next short-term goal. How this would affect Paul the next day… only time will tell.

* * *

**( TBC? )**


	2. Come Help or High Water!

**( Notes:**

**Not much to say here; just a lot of exposition on the Paul/Reggie/Brandon family feud, plenty of dialog for Maylene if anyone happens to be nuts about her, and a surprise guest recurring anime character who will be intermittently in and out of the story mainly because I really wanted to write for him, and I have a convenient way to fit him into the story that isn't totally contrived. Hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did writing it, and hopefully the quality is relatively good considering I wrote much of this during the early hours of the morning. )  
**

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Paul was wise to take shelter before nightfall. After he finally dozed off in his hotel room, a system of severe thunderstorms loomed over Jubilife City. Major areas of business, including the Pokémon Center, readied their back-up generators once Sinnoh Now's weather channel issued a warning for the strong storms soon to come. Lightning crackled over the city menacingly as those who were still outside quickly took refuge. Many cloud-to-ground lightning strikes were reported, making the outdoors a hazardous place to be.

It was a rough night for many, but Paul managed to sleep through every second of it; he was never once startled by the flash of lightning and the rumbling, ground-shaking thunder that followed soon after. However, unbeknownst to Paul, one strike of lightning around the crack of dawn was fierce enough to cut off the power to Paul's hotel and the residential block nearby. Thankfully, the hotel had a back-up generator that would serve as a substitute while the worst of the storm passed by.

However, due to the power being off for even a short moment, Paul's alarm clock was reset when the backup generator activated. The time was no longer accurate, and the alarm's defaults were set back to midnight, rather than what Paul had programmed before going to bed: 9:30 AM. This would allow him enough time to have breakfast and walk leisurely towards Jubilife's port to catch the ship departing for Canalave City at 10:45 AM.

The sun could not shine its rays down upon Paul to tell him it was morning, as the rainy weather remained long after the thunderstorms had passed. Now it was simply raining; a massive downpour of rain, but the citizens of Jubilife gladly took it over the thunder and lightning.

On his own, Paul eventually woke up, yawned, and stretched himself out a bit. He had realized that he did not wake up to the sound of his alarm and looked to his clock.

After staring at it for a moment, he rubbed his eyes, grabbed the clock and took a closer look at it. "What the… 3:13 AM?" Paul said out loud. He looked out the window to check. "That can't be right."

Paul walked over to the window and looked at his surroundings. The severe storm had left behind a mass of clouds in its wake, making things relatively dark outside for a morning. "I see… there must have been a storm last night that caused a power outage." He began to back his things in preparation for leaving the hotel after a quick breakfast. "That must have been what woke me up. It still looks pretty early out. The rain's bound to slow me down a bit, so it's best I leave earlier than I planned. Hopefully they haven't cancelled the trip to Canalave…"

Once he was ready, he left his room and approached the restaurant on the other side of the building. Paul was pleased to find no line as he went to the entrance and waited for a hostess to seat him. Once he was at a table and ordered his Oran Juice, Paul looked through the menu and quickly decided on what he wanted. The waitress returned to his table, ready with a pad of paper and a pen.

"Are you ready to order now, sir?" she sweetly asked.

"I am," Paul affirmed. "Some scrambled eggs and biscuits with gravy should suffice."

"Oh, ah…" The waitress looked uneasy. "My apologies, sir, but we stop serving breakfast after 10:30."

That was a cause for concern. "Wh… what? But that can't…" Paul looked to the window outside briefly before glaring at the waitress. "What time is it?!"

The waitress looked down at her Pokétch . "10:35, sir. I'm sorry, but you just narrowly missed breakfast, so…"

"Nevermind that!" Paul shouted abruptly, standing up and throwing down five PokéDollars on the table and grabbing his bag. "I have a boat to catch; this should cover the juice and the tip. Now, get out of my way!"

Paul was true to his word, as he would have trampled over the confused waitress had she not moved to the side just in time. In a blink of an eye, Paul was out of the restaurant and dashing outside while it continued to rain heavily. The waitress looked on, having no clue why it was so necessary for him to behave in such a manner, but collected the pay and tip, as well as the half-finished glass of juice and continued about her duties.

Meanwhile, outside in Jubilife City, Paul was running as fast as his legs could carry him to the port station on the other side of the city. It was fortunate that he always wore a coat, as it came in handy for the downpour he was racing out in; something very few others in the city dared to do.

"Only ten minutes until they disembark…" Paul muttered to himself as he kept running. "I _have_ to make it. It would be easy to use Honchkrow right now, but that's not a good idea in a thunderstorm… they'd better have a delay, or I'm not going to make it…!"

Despite the odds, Paul would not let himself be discouraged and continued to dash across Jubilife City to the port. He was soaked from head to toe by the time he finally reached the port, but that was the last thing on his mind at that point. Upon arriving at the station, he was able to see a ship sail away. In a panic, he ran to the checkpoint with his now-soggy ticket in hand.

"I'm here for the 10:45 departure to Canalave City!" Paul stated sharply. "Has it left yet?"

"Son, that ticket is all washed up," the ticket manager noted. "And the ship to Canalave left port five minutes ago. Sorry, but you're too late."

"You've got to be kidding me!" Paul complained, glaring out at the water. "In these conditions, there wasn't even a delay?!"

The manager shook his head. "The thunderstorm portion of the system passed over Jubilife quite a while ago. It's safe to voyage out now. Sorry you didn't make it. But since you had a ticket and went all this way, how about you stay the night at the station and we'll get you on the next ship to Canalave tomorrow morning. You're gonna catch a cold staying outside as wet as you are, kid."

"I'm _not_ waiting until tomorrow to get to Canalave," Paul growled lowly. "I did not come all this way just to be even further behind schedule than I already am. If there isn't another ship that will take me there, I'll just catch the boat myself."

"W-wait, what are you talking about?" the manager asked, looking appalled at the idea. "You need to stay right where you are! You're talking nonsense!"

"The only nonsense I hear is coming from _you_, old man," Paul replied in a scathing tone. "Now, get out of my way!"

With that, Paul burst through the checkpoint area and dashed towards the dock area. The sudden intrusion caught the attention of quite a few sailors as well as the ticket manager, but Paul acted fast before anyone could catch him. He opened up his bag and put the soaked ticket inside and took out a Pokéball. Without hesitation, he pressed the button and threw it.

"Weavile, standby!"

The Sharp Claw Pokémon came out of its ball, and like Paul's other Pokémon, was in a battle stance as it was usually only called for battling. Seeing no battle taking place, Weavile looked questioningly to Paul. "Weavile?"

Paul shook his head. "You aren't battling. This is an emergency. We need to reach Canalave City and we've missed our boat. It just left, however, so I believe you're fast enough to catch it." With his bag still open, Paul brought out some rope and quickly tied himself to his Pokémon. "You need to Surf along the water while using Ice Beam simultaneously for me to travel along conveniently behind you. Are we understood?"

While the order was complex, Weavile had been with Paul long enough to know his routine and had been through more difficult trials in the past. "Weav!" it affirmed, nodding to Paul.

"Good, then hurry up and use Surf! They're about to capture us!" Paul shouted out, noticing the group of people coming his way very quickly. He clung on tightly to the rope as Weavile started to venture over the water in the form of a large tidal wave. Inwardly, Weavile hoped the journey to the boat would not be a long one, knowing it had its limitations, especially while doing two things at once. A continuous Ice Beam was quick to follow to allow Paul to stand while Weavile essentially water-skied its partner across the water. By the time the sailors reached the edge of the port, Paul and Weavile were long gone, leaving only a quickly-melting trail of ice behind them that no sailor was brave enough to take on alone.

Paul looked back briefly and smiled slightly in acknowledgement of his plan's success. "We've lost them, Weavile. Keep it up; that boat can't be too far ahead of us."

* * *

As Paul's journey took a wild and exciting turn, the elder brother Reggie had a relatively mundane start to his morning. He was able to spend some time training with his original Pokémon team the previous night, but not as much as he would have liked. After taking care of his usual duties as a breeder, Reggie sighed and looked out the window, as he was not fond of dreary days like these.

He was thankful that the storm had bypassed Veilstone City completely, at least, which made it much safer for him to train with his Pokémon, even if the conditions were not to his liking. He had expected Maylene to come by at some point today, as she agreed to look over Reggie's breeding center while he was away doing the advanced training (as well as his father's challenge). It surprised Reggie that the Gym Leader would so readily agree to take on such a responsibility when she had other duties to fulfill, but began to doubt that she would be coming by today after all. Not that Reggie blamed Maylene; it was a long walk from the Veilstone Gym to the breeding center, and in the rain, it would not be a pleasant journey at all.

Reggie was taken by surprise when he heard a knock on the door and found none other than Maylene herself at the door with an umbrella in tow.

"Maylene!" Reggie exclaimed, looking overjoyed. "I was about to think you weren't coming due to the rain! Oh, you didn't have to force yourself. If it's going to be like this all day, I doubt I'll be leaving today."

Maylene smiled and shrugged. She was also joined by her close training partner, Lucario. "Actually, Reggie, your request couldn't have come at a better time!"

"Really?" he said, amused. "What do you mean?"

"Let's discuss it in the kitchen," Maylene suggested. "Lucario gets cranky if he gets too soggy," she said with a laugh, prompting her partner to grumble in annoyance.

Reggie smiled and stood aside to let his guests in. "By all means, then! Tell me what's been going on with you; it's been a while."

After being settled at the kitchen table with cups of tea (and some berries for Lucario), Reggie and Maylene resumed their discussion.

"So, what makes this so timely and all?" Reggie inquired. "Aren't you normally tied up with your duties as the Gym Leader?"

"That's the thing," said Maylene. "They've temporarily shut down the gym for renovations. Apparently they're revamping it and giving it a whole new look. And it's not just my Gym that's getting reimaged; Gardenia and Fantina are getting theirs renovated as well. It was a decision made by the Pokémon League, and if it's working to improve my Gym, I really can't turn down such a generous offer."

Reggie nodded, understanding. "So that's why you're able to look over the breeding center… well, you ought to be able to take on challenges from trainers even with the Gym unavailable, Maylene. I have a wide, open field for a backyard that's perfectly suitable for a battleground should you need it."

"Really? I didn't think about the possibility of getting challenges while the Gym's under construction…" Maylene pondered out loud. "You think I can legally do that here?"

"Sure, why not? Fantina travels often and takes on challenges outside her Gym whenever one is issued to her," Reggie pointed out. "And I'm not sure if you're familiar with her, but there's a Gym Leader from Johto named Whitney who's also been known to take on official Gym battles outside her Gym. I don't think any trainer will have a problem with trying to earn a Cobble Badge here. You may want to post up a notice at your Gym letting the trainers know where you are now, though."

Maylene nodded. "Thanks for telling me that… I feel a lot better about this now. Looks like this'll help both you and me. I'll give Connally a call; he's helping out with the Gym's renovations, so he can put up the notice about where I'll be until the Gym's finished."

Reggie smiled. "Looks like we have everything set, then. I was feeling guilty myself about dragging you away from your Gym, but this should work out perfectly. Just remember: don't hesitate to give me a call if you've having trouble caring for any of the Pokémon here," he said, holding up a PokéGear. "I offered to share one of these with my brother, but he declined. Since I'd hate to let them go to waste, I'll let you have this one. There's no telling where I'll be while I'm training and when I meet my dad, so this'll come in handy should you need anything. If I stop by a Pokémon Center, I'll be sure to give you a call and check up on how things are going."

"Wow… thanks," Maylene uttered, shyly accepting the PokéGear. "How's Paul doing, anyway?"

"Ah, well…" Reggie looked up and sighed, yet did so with a smile. "He's the same as always, so don't worry; according to him, he treated Gardenia way worse than he did you. I just exchanged Pokémon with him yesterday; said he was on his way to Canalave City. Looks like Byron's his next target."

Maylene nodded. "No offense, but I hope Byron can knock him down a peg or two. If he hasn't changed a bit, someone needs to knock some sense into him."

"I wouldn't waste my time hoping for that," Reggie warned. "Even if Byron does beat him, Paul will win eventually. He's gotten extra incentive to get eight Sinnoh badges and get through the League now, so he'll be working overtime to make sure he's ready."

"Ready for the League?" Maylene asked.

"Ready for dad," Reggie corrected. "He sent me a letter recently issuing a challenge to both of us…"

Maylene's eyes widened at the revelation; being familiar with Reggie, she of course knew much of Pyramid King Brandon. "So that's why you're going out to train… I thought something was weird about you doing that after you chose to be a breeder…"

Reggie sighed and looked to his mantle, where he kept frames of all the badges he won in Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, Sinnoh, and Kanto's Battle Frontier symbols. It was a complete set… all except for the final Symbol in the Battle Frontier; the Brave Symbol. "A lot of people weren't supportive of my decision considering my accomplishments in battle… and don't get me wrong, Maylene; I'm not considering a career change. I still have my heart set on being the best breeder in the Sinnoh region."

"So why are you taking up the challenge?" Maylene asked out of honest curiosity. "You've shown us all that you have amazing battling prowess when necessary… it just simply isn't you. I've accepted that… and several others have, too. It's just your dad and brother…"

"I'm doing this for closure," Reggie assured. "To me, the Brave Symbol means so much more than just… completing my collection. If I cared about that, I never would have stopped trying to win it. But my dad… well, you've seen how he can be. I'm fighting for this symbol because to him, it says that I truly am his son. I can win all of the badges and Leagues in the Pokémon world… but none of it means a thing if I can't defeat my old man in battle. I don't expect you to understand it completely, but ever since our family was broken up, I've been determined to mend it back together the best way I knew how…"

Maylene, paying close attention to Reggie's words, blinked at the last part. "The best way you knew how? Surely you don't mean this…?"

"It was wishful thinking on my part that I could show my father that breeders have a place in the Pokémon world just as much as trainers. But he sees this profession as an insult to his own… and Paul shares the same opinion. The only way I can make amends with my father is to defeat him in battle and earn his Brave Symbol. I've tried it before many times and failed. Because of the path I've chosen, I honestly haven't gotten much stronger since the last time I faced him. That's why I need intensive training as soon as possible. I'm afraid I might not get another chance to battle him after this time, and if that happens… this family will never come together again." Reggie slumped, with his eyes failing to make contact with Maylene's. "That's not what mom would want…"

"She'd want you three to be happy and unified, like you were before she…" Maylene paused when she noticed Reggie's expression. "O-oh, geez… sorry; I didn't mean to bring that up…"

Reggie faced her again, shaking his head and resuming his usual smiling expression. "I was the one who brought it up first. Besides that… it's nice to reminisce about mom now and then. Paul was young when she died, so he honestly doesn't know enough about her… and dad's been evasive about the topic since she passed away."

That detail made Maylene concerned. "That's a long time to shove a loved one out of your memory. I don't know much of her myself, but… judging from what others have said, she used to be a breeder too, right?"

"That's right," Reggie affirmed. "So you think it'd be weird for dad to shun me when I'm following in mom's footsteps… but the fact of the matter is that Paul and I were both young when mom passed on. We relied on him for strength to move past it… but there was no one to help dad through his loss. He changed after she died…"

"Does he… see her in you?" Maylene asked meekly. "Maybe that's why…"

Reggie sighed; this time no smile could cover up what he honestly felt inside. "The thought had crossed my mind. And that's even more reason why I feel I need to win this Brave Symbol from dad. It feels like I'm a living reminder of what he's lost, and since he never properly got over that… it disturbs him. So he shuns me… but if I can defeat him in battle, I can show him proof that I am my own person. I can show him that I can be as skilled as him in battle if I wanted to be. And maybe he'll even see that he's been ridiculous to cast me away just because I remind him of mom. So yes, Maylene… there are many reasons why I took up this challenge, and that's why I want to take my training seriously without any distractions. I have to bring everything I have to the table when I face him, and… I don't think I'm at the point where I can do that yet."

"Then don't worry about this place at all!" Maylene said with confidence. "I wanna see you stick it to your dad and bring you guys together again! I think all of the Pokémon here would agree with me, too. You're a great breeder, Reggie, but what would _really_ put them at ease is to have a real family living here again."

Reggie nodded, but remained firm. "I'm not letting myself get too idealistic about this. The odds are well against me, and even if I win, that won't make dad quit being a Frontier Brain. It's my fault that dad's stuck in Kanto as a Frontier Brain to begin with… he has a major responsibility to uphold in his position."

"That's true," Maylene concurred. "Frontier Brains are a pretty big deal… I'd ask why it's your 'fault', but I think I've dug deep enough into your personal business as it is…" She blushed in embarrassment after saying that.

"Like I said, it's nice to have someone to talk to about these matters for once," said Reggie. "It's best you get it out of your system before I leave; after that, I'll be too busy to answer many questions, you know."

Maylene looked conflicted. "You've got a point there… but there's another thing that's got me curious. You said your dad issued a challenge to Paul too, right? Why is that, since he hasn't even challenged Kanto's Battle Frontier yet? Don't you need the other six Symbols in order to find Brandon and challenge him?"

"Correct," affirmed Reggie. "Paul's a special case. He's more similar to dad, if you haven't noticed. He wants to go a similar route to dad, only achieve what dad failed to do in the past. I think dad admires Paul's initiative, even though he's still just as cold and distant to him as he is to me. According to dad, a new Battle Frontier is opening up soon. He wants Paul to earn all of the Medals in this new Frontier, and when he does, dad will consider it a special case and allow my brother to fight him for a Brave Symbol. "

"Interesting," Maylene remarked. "I had no idea a new Battle Frontier was opening up. I guess he's not making you do it since you conquered Kanto's, right?"

"I assume," Reggie figured. "So I don't need to earn anything to battle father; he's on the hunt for another legendary Pokémon. He says this one's the alleged leader of the Regi trio that he just captured a while back. He's still searching for clues, but he says it goes by the name of 'Regigigas'. When he captures Regigigas, I'll be invited to battle. So it's impossible to determine how much time I have before the time comes, which is why I need to start as soon as possible. I'm counting on you to give me a call if dad contacts this place so I'll know when to head to Kanto."

Maylene nodded, understanding fully what she needed to do. "If that's the case, Reggie, you should start training right now! Just leave the Pokémon to me; you can't afford to waste precious time on what's gonna be an important milestone in your life!"

"Are you _sure_ you can run things here without me telling you the specifics?" Reggie asked, feeling unsure. "It's not like this is good weather to be training out in, anyway…"

After hearing that, Maylene's Lucario grumbled and glared at Reggie. Maylene nodded her head in agreement with her partner. "Unless the conditions are severe, Lucario and I train day and night, rain or shine. If you're really committed to your training, you'd better start packing right now!"

Reggie was happy to see the burning spirit in the young Gym Leader; he had last heard that she was having issues with her confidence because of Paul, but was sure a certain boy with his Pikachu helped greatly in reviving Maylene's enthusiasm. "I'm already packed up for a long journey," he assured her. "I just need to double-check which Pokémon I'm taking with me. No doubt I'll be taking my starter…"

Soon after saying that, Reggie brought out a Pokéball, pressed the button and tossed it out, revealing the Pokémon he was given by Professor Rowan many years ago.

"Infernape…!"

"An Infernape, huh?" Maylene mused with a grin. "Look, Lucario: a fellow Fighting-type!"

Lucario looked to Reggie's Infernape briefly with a stiff nod before looking back off into the distance.

"Aww, come here, you," Reggie cooed as he hugged his Infernape. Like many of his Pokémon, his Infernape was a friendly, almost overly-affectionate partner. Reggie looked back up to Maylene. "Yeah, in addition to being one of my strongest partners, his type combination can work with Regirock, Registeel, _and_ Regice with ease, so he's basically my trump card in the grand scheme of things." He grabbed a few other Pokéballs, but did not release the Pokémon inside. "Aside from Infernape, I'm also taking my other longtime companions: Staraptor, Bibarel, and Swalot."

Maylene nodded. "So that makes four. You guys are doing a full six-on-six battle, aren't you?"

"That's right," said Reggie. "So that would leave Marowak and Ampharos. Really, from raising so many Pokémon, the possibilities are endless for me… but my dad's selection outside of the Regis is going to be pretty unpredictable. I have to be very careful about who I choose. Thankfully, I've worked with these six for a very long time… I trust they'll do their best, and they understand what this battle means to me."

"Infer, infer!" Infernape chattered, as if it were agreeing with Reggie.

Reggie smiled, giving Infernape a pat on the head and feeding his starter a treat. "Much as I regret to do so… I may have to be a bit tougher on them than I'm used to being."

"They'll understand," Maylene assured him. "You can take solace in the fact that you can't out-do your brother in cruelty, so there won't be any worry of you making the wrong decision. This is the path you've chosen, Reggie. You're very good at it. Now's not the time to be having self-doubts."

Returning Infernape to its Pokéball, Reggie chuckled under his breath a bit before facing Maylene. "You're absolutely right. You've gotten a lot more confident over a short period of time, you know?"

"Well, uh…" Maylene blushed in embarrassment again. "I can't take all the credit for myself, but… I'm supposed to be like this all the time anyway! I'm a professional trainer, just like you. And you know what they say: every path of life in Pokémon starts with training, no matter which route you take. You aren't betraying your dreams, Reggie; you're just going back to your roots to prove a point to your dad that he should've gotten on his own a long time ago!"

"In that case, I think you've proven to me that you can handle things here as well as keep up the good work in being Veilstone's Gym Leader," said Reggie, winking to Maylene as he grabbed his belongings. "I'd better head out, then, while it's still… relatively light outside. Remember to give me a call on the PokéGear if you have any questions or problems, alright?"

Maylene nodded with enthusiasm. "And if Paul calls, I'll let you know about that too if you want!"

"Of course," said Reggie. "I can't help but worry about that kid, no matter how many times he tells me not to. Anything else you need me to cover, Maylene?"

After looking around briefly, Maylene shrugged. "Nothing I can think of, really! Just make sure you take care of yourself, Reggie! Do your best, but don't overdo it, okay?"

Reggie shook Maylene's hand before turning around to exit from the front door. "It's a promise. Until we meet again, then…"

"Hopefully that'll be sooner than later!" Maylene called out as Reggie left his home and out to parts unknown to train for the battle of his life. After a while, Maylene's enthusiasm faded into curiosity as she looked up, as if trying to recall something.

"Regigigas…" she muttered. "Something about that name sounds familiar… maybe I should look into that…"

* * *

As Reggie left to begin his rigorous training session in solitude, Paul was still water-skiing with Weavile in hot pursuit of the boat en route to Canalave City that he was supposed to board. By this point, the boat was within sight, which made Paul grin.

"Weavile, keep up what you're doing and don't slow down! We're getting close!" Paul ordered. At this point, Weavile was well on its way to becoming fatigued due to the constant use of Surf and Ice Beam. The heavy rain pouring down on both of them did nothing to help matters, either.

Instances like these were where Paul's intense training paid off, as Weavile's speed was likely the sole deciding factor in whether or not Weavile and Paul could reach the ship in time before Weavile's energy gave out. Weavile dug its claw into the steel of the ship just enough to maintain a grip on it without having to continue the Surf/Ice Beam combination. Energy-wise, Weavile was now spent and barely had the strength to maintain its grip on the ship. By stopping Ice Beam, Paul no longer had a solid surface to slide upon and was now dragged in the water, rendering him helpless as he had no choice but to cling onto the rope of which the knots were quickly loosening.

"Weavile…!" Paul spat, trying to keep himself above the water. "D-don't you _dare_ quit now! All you need to do is climb the ship and we'll both be safe! I trained you to be stronger than this, didn't I?!"

Unfortunately, after all of his years of Pokémon training, Paul still lacked insight on just how far a Pokémon can go before completely giving out, and Weavile was putting all its remaining energy into hanging onto the ship.

"Weavile, what are you doing?!" Paul shouted impatiently. "Climb, already!!"

But Weavile had no means of recovering when it had to focus not only on sticking to the ship, but also maintain a grip on its trainer as the ship moved swiftly across the lake.

"This is not a choice you have in the matter!" Paul coldly reminded his Pokémon. "Climb up this ship _right now_ or we're both going to die!"

No amount of threatening could change their situation. Paul himself could no longer find himself able to shout orders at Weavile as he found it harder and harder to keep his head above water. But in what seemed like a miracle, Paul was suddenly consumed with a light and was lifted up above the water on his own. Slowly, his body seemingly defied gravity as it hovered higher and higher into the air, and since they were connected by a rope, Weavile was eventually dragged along with this mysterious phenomenon, though it was not consumed in the mysterious light that Paul was.

All _too_ conveniently, Paul was raised high enough to be landed onto the deck of the ship along with Weavile. After taking a few moments coughing out the water he had inadvertently swallowed, Paul realized that he had indeed succeeded in boarding the ship to Canalave City. Weavile too was with him, but borderline passed-out. Freezing cold and soaking wet, Paul reluctantly hugged himself to retain what little body heat he had left as he look up at his apparent saviors: in Paul's case, said saviors were actually quite familiar.

The answer to Paul's ability to float on his own was answered when a tall, pink Pokémon made its presence known: Slowking. It had used Psychic to manipulate Paul's body to its will; in this case, raise Paul's body from the water to the ship. Since Weavile was partially a Dark-typed Pokémon, Psychic would not work on Weavile; it was simply lucky enough to be attached to Paul with a rope in order to be pulled along with him.

Standing next to Slowking was the trainer whom noticed the incident and ordered Slowking to save them: the green-haired bespectacled human PokéDex himself… Conway.

"And here I thought I was simply imagining things when I heard a familiar, cold-hearted and militant voice asking a Pokémon to do unreasonable things," Conway said in his standard analytical tone, complete with amusement.

"_You're welcome_, by the way."

* * *

**(TBC)**


	3. My Way or the Conway!

**( Notes:**

**Wow, consider this a record. Record for the fastest period between chapter updates for me. Yeah, truth be told, I'm slower than a snail when it comes to actually finishing my multi-parter stories. There's one I started six years ago that had a four-year gap before I finally updated it. So don't get used to this. My writing mojo comes and goes with the flow. Sometimes I'll be in a writing madness, but at other times you'll be lucky to see a thing from me all year. Hopefully that won't be the case with this story, considering I'm sort of following the anime as it goes to reference this story. You know, like a HoSo equivalent of the D/P series (well, if I was really that arrogant to call this that). **

**Anyway, I decided to throw Conway in as another major character because I've been dying to write for him for months. I know of a way to let him not take focus away from the main plot of the story, at least, so it should be fitting. Anyone who loves Conway as much as I do should be very happy with this chapter. Also, Reggie undergoes something of a major OOC transformation at the later part of that story. I'm trying to explain it in a way that makes sense, but I'll let you guys be the judge of that. Please enjoy the continuation! )  
**

* * *

For this sight, there were no words; nothing Paul could retort back that would make him feel better after realizing who just saved him and his Weavile from certain death.

"I'm still waiting," Conway sung out tauntingly, as he had not forgotten how ruthless and uncouth Paul was during the Tag Battle tournament at Hearthome City. Still getting no response, Conway's amusement faded with a tired sigh. "Fine, take your time on that if you want to. But we should really get you two inside now. In case you haven't noticed, it's raining rather heavily outside and you're soaking wet as it is."

With that, Paul angrily pointed towards the slightly older trainer. "Don't you dare come off as condescending to me! I didn't ask for your help! Don't expect me to-" Paul was then cut off by a sneeze. On its own, Slowking took that as a cue to pick up the now-unconscious Weavile and take it inside. Already undaunted by Paul's rage, Conway offered a hand to help Paul up.

"I had no intent on talking to you like I would a toddler," Conway pointed out. "I'm simply stating a fact. You're going to catch a cold at this rate, so it's just common sense to go inside and warm up."

Paul smacked his hand away, and with a slight amount of difficulty, managed to stand up on his own. "I know that!! That doesn't mean I have to accept _your_ help!" He could be heard growling as he went inside on his own, following Slowking.

Analyzing his behavior as he's done to many people in the past, Conway smirked as he rested his chin against his hand. "Oh my. This trip suddenly got a lot more interesting…" After giving Paul some personal space, Conway went inside as well.

Conway couldn't help but find it mildly humorous that Paul walked inside the fancy hallway, practically looking like a drowned Raticate in doing so in his condition. Others aboard the ship took notice to the drenched boy, but his intense expressions were more than enough to keep them quiet. The small group continued to walk until Slowking stopped at a certain room and went inside, still carrying Weavile. Paul went in afterwards, eventually followed by Conway, who closed the door.

The elder trainer looked closely at Weavile and shook his head. "Out like a light. And there aren't any areas on this ship that could help your Weavile. We should be reaching Canalave City soon, though. They have a Pokémon Center that'll patch your little guy up for you." Conway looked to Paul with a mildly serious look on his face. "Until then, it would be best if you recalled your Pokémon to its ball."

"Hmph," Paul grunted, refusing to even look at Conway. He was lucky to still have his duffle bag with him, and thusly opened it up to take out Weavile's Pokéball. "Return," he mumbled, and a red beam of light later, Weavile was returned to its ball.

Once Weavile was secured, Paul glared at the ball and tossed it back into his bag. "I have half a mind to release the little cretin after that pathetic stunt back there. That moron could've gotten us both killed."

Conway pretended not to be interested in conversing with Paul by wiping the lenses of his glasses just then, but responded nonetheless. "Still as harsh as always, of course… what exactly did Weavile do to endanger both your lives, if you don't mind my asking? Why are you hijacking a ship, anyway?"

"Look!" Paul shouted, bringing out the soaked ticket from his bag. "I booked this trip ahead of time; I wasn't hijacking anything! The thunderstorm knocked out the power in Jubilife City and caused me to be late for the ship! … But only narrowly," he added. "Five minutes at best. Those idiots should have delayed the trip in conditions like these."

"Bet you wish you had a Pokétch now, huh?" Conway commented, and simply could not resist adding some of that sadistic amusement in this tone. "Never would've had to get into this mess in the first place if you did."

"Shut up!" Paul demanded. "Like you're one to talk!"

Conway wagged his finger at Paul. "It's on my To-Do List, I'll have you know. I've just been busy." He couldn't wait to return to the original subject, however. "So anyway, that's making a little more sense why you're here like this. There was no delay because the severe parts of the system moved past Jubilife well before this ship was set to sail," he explained. Not that Paul didn't already know this, thanks to the ticket manager he briefly had that exchange with, but it didn't anger him any less to hear it again.

"Since you were only narrowly late, you thought you could catch up with the ship since you happen to have a Weavile, which is notorious for being one of the fastest Pokémon around," Conway figured; correctly, at that. "So I assume by the rope and whatnot that you and Weavile Surfed your way here on your own?"

"Surf _and_ Ice Beam," Paul added. "I wanted to avoid getting even more wet than I already was, but it turns out my Weavile is a major disappointment, because it can't even pull off two moves at once without nearly killing itself and me."

That earned a shake of the head from Conway. "Even if Weavile's experienced, you're asking for a little much there. You can't sell it short, Paul. You _did_ make it here, did you not?"

"Only because your Slowking interfered," Paul pointed out, referring to Conway's large Pokémon, who simply huffed back at him. "Which, if I may remind you, I don't recall asking you to do that for me."

Conway raised an eyebrow at that statement. "What, and let you two drown? You're lucky I was close enough to the back of the ship to hear your cries for help. Weavile's especially lucky to have been tied to you by a rope. Psychic moves don't work on Dark-type Pokémon, so Weavile would've been a sitting duck if it weren't tied to you and Slowking wouldn't have been able to do a thing…"

"I _did not_ ask for help," Paul said, adamant about this detail. "I was shouting at Weavile to stop being such a weakling. It managed to reach the ship, but it was too weak to _climb_ it."

"Try using Surf and Ice Beam simultaneously yourself and see how long _your_ stamina holds out," Conway retorted, with a light pause. "Oh wait, you _can't_."

Paul rolled his eyes. "Because I'm not a Pokémon, ha-ha-ha. You're not one either, so it's really not as right for you to judge how long my Weavile can keep up a combination."

Conway laughed at that. "What, because I'm not a Nurse Joy? I don't need to be a Pokémon or someone in the medical field to know its limitations, Paul. Slowking can establish a telepathic connection with me. We telecommunicate in the same language, so I know full well of its capabilities and limitations. It's something of a perk to having a Psychic Pokémon, you might say."

"Rub it in, why don't you?" Paul grumbled, looking down towards his feet.

"Why, I'd love to," Conway responded, as if Paul were actually requesting that he should. "Slowking can sense the needs and limitations of other Pokémon as well. By carrying your Weavile, even if it is partially a Dark-type, Slowking can tell why it passed out. He relays that information to me with telecommunication, and voila, I know what's wrong with your Weavile." Conway suddenly gave a stern look to Paul, with his signature gleaming glasses gesture. "So that's something you won't need to discuss with Nurse Joy when we reach Canalave, which is a good thing… because as I recall back in Hearthome City, you and the Nurse Joys don't mesh particularly well. They care too much, and you care too little."

"_Please_ shut up," Paul requested through gritted teeth. It truly grated him to be lectured by a trainer… not only one who annoyed him, but one he defeated in battle before. Thinking about it, Paul found this almost as aggravating as being lectured by Ash.

Conway nodded, digging through his own bag for some reason. "On one condition, then."

Paul looked up with a confused look on his face. "And that is…?"

"Strip 'em." Paul found Conway tossing him a fresh, clean, and _dry_ shirt. It was obvious why Conway did this, but it didn't stop Paul from glaring at him and going on the defensive.

"I already knew you were a creep, but this is too much!" Paul shouted back, tossing the shirt to the bed.

Conway was taken aback by that at first, but then he greatly struggled not bust out laughing at Paul's shame. "You're _drenched_, remember? You need to hang your shirt out to dry before we reach Canalave City, and I can assure you it won't be any less rainy there than it's been in Jubilife. You're pretty much doomed to catch a cold as it is, Paul. Let's not have it turn into pneumonia before you can get Weavile to the Pokémon Center."

As if on cue, Paul sneezed, but his angry expressions wouldn't fade. "You said it wouldn't be long until we reached Canalave. What's the point of hanging out my shirt to dry if we'll be making landfall shortly anyway?"

"Under normal circumstances, yes, you would be correct," Conway agreed. "But thankfully you crossed paths with me, and your shirt will be as good as new before we ever reach Canalave City. Hm, come to think of it… change out of your pants, too," he suggested, tossing Paul a pair of sweatpants which ultimately ended up in the same place as the shirt: the bed.

"Not with _you_ in this room," Paul said, coldly and sternly. "Save my life a million times, and it still won't make me think of you as any less of a creep. I'm only changing if you get out of here."

Conway shrugged and turned around. "I was about to say, we're all guys here, but if you're that sensitive, then consider your wish granted. Just let me know when you're dressed and I'll come in to dry your clothes. Come along, Slowking."

Slowking calmly conceded with its usual "Slooow," and followed Conway outside to the hall. After Slowking shut the door behind the two of them, Paul glared at the dry clothing he was offered for a moment before sneezing once more. He sighed, remembering how cold he was, and on that merit decided to take up Conway's offer.

Waiting outside the door, Conway sighed, but it was somewhat of a contented one. "He's certainly a tough nut to crack, isn't he, Slowking?"

"Slowking, slow," it responded, calmly shaking its head as if to say "not at all".

"You don't think so, huh?" Conway asked, finding this interesting. "Perhaps it might be worth our while to stick around him for the time being, then." He adjusted his glasses, with the lenses flashing once again. "Might be fun, right?"

"Slo-slo-slooo!" Slowking bellowed, most likely its way of laughing in agreement.

The moments passed. Seconds turned into minutes. The minutes quickly accumulated to half an hour.

Conway was calmly leaning against the wall with his mind elsewhere at the time; it was Slowking who realized Paul was taking way too long to change clothes. It edged closer to its trainer and poked his shoulder, whispering "Kingslow, king," into his ear.

"Ah-whuh…?!" Conway spat, who had immersed himself into a daydream while waiting for Paul. He looked around confusedly for a moment. "D-Dawn…? Where did you…?"

His thoughts were cut off when he heard Slowking snickering at the sight. Hating to have his weakness exposed in such a manner, Conway frowned at hi s partner, but couldn't hide his blushing. "Not funny, Slowking. What is it?"

Slowking merely pointed to the door of Conway's room they had been standing outside of for quite some time now.

"O-oh!" Conway exclaimed, remembering where he was and what he was doing. "Why didn't he call for us? He's surely had enough time now…" His expressions turned grim, hoping Paul hadn't gone crazy and escaped through the window or anything. "Time to check on him," he concluded, and opened the door to his room to find Paul leisurely lying on Conway's bed with the dry clothes on. He had already hung his wet clothes out to be dried and it seemed he had completed all this quite some time ago.

Conway inwardly sighed a breath of relief, but couldn't pretend _not_ to be angry at Paul for this. "Forgot to call us back in, I see."

"I didn't forget," Paul said. "I needed some alone-time. You're the one stupid enough to think I needed half an hour to change clothes. All the same, it relieves me to know you're only a creepy pervert around the women."

"Harsh," Conway replied. "Very harsh, Paul. I am a perfect gentleman with the ladies, I'll have you know."

Paul scoffed at the claim. "It's been how long since that Tag Battle tournament…? And here you are, still harping on about that girl that travels with Ash. Pathetic."

That took Conway off-guard. He didn't expect Paul would have heard him through the walls. Apparently, he underestimated their thickness, or perhaps the door was not as secure as it looked… nonetheless, Conway was helpless to control the redness that spread over his face as he huffed in frustration and grabbed one of his Pokéballs. He gave a sharp glare to Slowking as it came in, who was again chuckling at Conway's not-so-subtle dream girl.

"Need I remind you I am helping you out of the goodness of my heart?" Conway said sternly. "Gutsy of you to make fun of me after not only saving your life, but sparing you from pneumonia."

Finding Conway's weakness was too easy, Paul thought. All the same, he smiled at finally having something to combat Conway's lecturing. "Yes, yes, I'm forever in your debt or whatever. Now how exactly are you planning to dry my clothes?"

"This way," Conway said simply as he pressed his Pokéball's button and tossed it a short distance. "Castform, come on down!"

The small, light Weather Pokémon appeared from its ball and sweetly greeted its guests with a bow. "Castform!"

"A _Castform?_" Paul said out loud, somewhat in disbelief. "You're going to dry my clothes with that thing?"

Being called a thing in a derogatory tone, Castform looked down, as its cheeriness was quickly replaced by depression. "Cast…"

"Take it easy, Paul," Conway requested. "Castform's a little sensitive. I just caught the poor creature not too long ago. It's no veteran, but it'll get the job done; trust me, and trust Castform. Do that, and you can leave this ship without looking like you just got out of bed."

"I'll hold you to it, then," Paul conceded, crossing his arms and not moving from his position on the bed. He then sneezed, much to his aggravation.

Conway nodded, heading for the window. "You may want to get yourself taken care of when you reach the Pokémon Center. I'd hate for my efforts to go to waste simply because you're too proud to admit you're sick."

Paul cleared his throat, suddenly finding that harder to do now that he had indeed been ridden with a cold. "Don't worry your little head about that. Dry my clothes, already."

"Hm, yeah…" Conway muttered as he opened the window and looked out briefly. "We're getting close, so we'll need to boost the heat a bit to dry your clothes out in time. Castform, go out there for a second and use Sunny Day."

"Castcast!" It cheered, floating itself out the window to do just that. Paul just gaped at the sight of the downpour disappearing (which confused the others on the ship) and the sun shining through the deep, dark clouds. As this happened, Castform shifted into Sunny Castform, now Fire-typed and complete with a translucent orange sun ornament to its head.

"You could have done that all along?!" Paul shouted. "What is _wrong_ with you?!"

Conway gestured to Castform to come back inside now that the deed was done, and looked sharply to Paul before giving the next order. "As I said, Castform is a recent capture of mine. Its power and true potential is not yet realized, and as such, Sunny Day will not last for long. By the time we reach Canalave City, the sun will recede back into the clouds and the rain will resume. You should be aware that only a choice few Pokémon can make Sunny Day last for a long time, and only one can make it that way forever if it wanted to."

"It's always technicalities with you," Paul complained. "I already know this, yes, so drop it. I assume you made Castform use Sunny Day because it will make Castform's fire attacks stronger and will dry my clothes more quickly."

"Excellent deduction," Conway affirmed. "We'll have your clothes dried in no time. Castform, go under Paul's wet clothing and hold a continuous Ember underneath them for a while. Keep that up until his clothes are dried out."

"And don't burn my clothes," Paul added.

Conway simply nodded. "Yes, yes. Make sure you don't burn his clothes, Castform."

"Foooorm!" It shouted in a diminutive, somewhat-quiet voice as it did what its trainer commanded.

"And there you have it," said Conway. "With Sunny Day in play, Ember's power is boosted by fifty percent, and now that Castform is a Fire-type, it has a same-type attack bonus which boosts Ember another fifty percent. In short, it's twice as powerful as it normally is, and will dry your clothes in half the time as a result."

"You and your calculations…" Paul muttered. "At least they're factoring into something useful this time."

"Math and science are truly underdogs in this world," Conway said woefully. "That's why I dedicate myself to living by them to prove that they are underutilized tactics."

To that statement, Paul raised an eyebrow. "What exactly are you, anyway? You battle, you have breeder-level knowledge of caring for Pokémon, and you're full of useless Pokémon trivia. You don't seem to commit to anything."

"Exactly," Conway pointed out. "Think of me as a Pokémon Freelancer. I dabble in a bit of this, in a bit of that… in a bit of everything. All aspects of Pokémon interest me, and I was to experience every road one can take."

"A Freelancer," Paul echoed. "That's the nice way of saying you're a Jack of all Trades, but a Master of none."

Conway narrowed his eyes at that remark. "Yes, I suppose that would be the pessimist's definition. Still, I like to think of it as getting a taste of every little slice of life a trainer takes. I love to research how a Pokémon ticks, I enjoy the thrill of battle, I enjoy bonding and taking care of them… and after watching the Wallace Cup, shoot, I might even give Contests a try one day."

Paul shook his head and sighed. "What a waste of potential-… wait. You _watched_ that?"

"After I learned Dawn was a Coordinator, I've been watching every Contest on TV ever since," Conway announced eagerly. "I would have loved to be in the audience at the Wallace Cup, because I do hold quite a bit of respect for Wallace himself, but I figured perhaps my presence would distract Dawn and dent her performance. And seeing her win…" Conway paused when he realized his Dawn fascination was taking over the conversation, and only giving Paul more ammunition to use against him in the future. He coughed, trying to divert attention way from that subject.

"The point is, I look up to Wallace, because by definition, Wallace himself is what you just described me."

Paul blinked. "What, the Jack of all Trades?"

"Essentially," Paul replied. "He was once the Gym Leader of Sootopolis City in Hoenn. He later became Hoenn's Champion of the Elite Four. And now he is a Contest Master… ah, obviously meaning he has won a Grand Festival at some point," he clarified. "He is intuitive to boot. Wallace is the entire package and never needed to commit to just one route. If he can do it, it's true that anyone with their heart and mind in the right place can achieve the fame and success Wallace has."

Conway's mind went directly to fantasy, imagining himself in Wallace's outfit and posing in the middle of a stadium with all of his glorious Pokémon surrounding him, as fans in the arena chanted his name. He envisioned Dawn pushing her way through the fans to reach him, and then…

"You're delusional," Paul deducted. "Wallace was successful because he focuses on his work, unlike you. You'll never be like him."

Conway's fantasy dissipated as Paul said those scathing words. "Wh-what do you mean by that?"

Paul shook his head. "You're thinking about that girl again. It's written all over your face. As long as you're fixated on something so trivial, you'll never be successful at anything, ever."

Indeed, Conway was blushing uncontrollably while he was fantasizing about his success and Dawn. If Paul could already tell, Conway saw no point in denying it. "There is such a thing as love beyond Pokémon, Paul. Everyone experiences it. Otherwise, the human race would have died out years ago," he added in a jokingly tone. "Right?"

"Do you ever see a woman attached to Wallace?" Paul asked, purely in a serious tone. "Undeniably, he has fangirls, but there could be no room for love in his life when he's this successful. That's exactly why Wallace is a diamond in the rough. People who strive to be like him are weakened by their hormones. There is no love. Only a desire to procreate."

Conway sighed. "That's a really weak theory, Paul. We can all have more than one reason to succeed in our goals. Plenty of people have had success and found love and made a family. I'm surprised you would even say that, considering your father and his status."

Paul froze for a moment; Conway knew that Brandon was his father. His expressions quickly reverted to annoyance. "So you know who my father is. I suppose that's not a surprise, considering what a snoop you are."

"No _snooping_ was necessary to know that," Conway retorted. "It's common knowledge in the Sinnoh region. Pyramid King Brandon is notorious for being the toughest Frontier Brain in all of Kanto. Someone who hailed from our region who reaches that prestige is practically a celebrity, so of course we know of him and his two sons." He grinned, loving it when his limitless abundance of knowledge aided him like this. "It also helps that you look just like him."

It pained Paul in many ways to talk about his father, especially to people like Conway. However, even though his own knowledge of his family history was foggy, Paul felt he needed to make a point to prove his opinion was the truth, and not Conway's.

"Love had nothing to do with the old man's success," Paul stated; sharp in tone. "He never achieved any kind of status until _after_ my mother died. After that, he wrote me off, he wrote my older brother off, and through that, he has become the nigh-unbeatable Frontier Brain he is today. By throwing out the idea of love and family, the old man is more powerful than ever."

"He isn't invincible," Conway pointed out. "I would never sell him short, but the Pyramid King can and has been beaten by a select few. Your theory proves nothing. If he's written you off, how would you even know what he has on his mind, Paul? Perhaps, in some strange way, he still loves his sons dearly, but shows it differently from the others. My hypothesis is that your father became hardened with the loss of his wife and had doubts about being able to take care of you, so instead of wasting his time in struggling with something he is weak at, he focuses on his natural strengths to pull himself through his depression and hoped to inspire you and your brother to pull through it as well. Even if your mother's gone, she remains in your hearts."

Paul was quickly becoming enraged the more Conway speculated about his complicated family life. Conway was simply a Sinnoh resident who was raised on rumors. Paul wasn't about to take Conway's words sitting down.

"She isn't in my heart," Paul claimed. "I was too young to really know her when she passed away. I have no idea what she was like. All I know is that she was a breeder. I never harp on endlessly about her _or_ the old man. You're confusing me with Reggie."

"Oh, you never really know," Conway said mysteriously. "You don't know her well enough to remember what she was like… but she can subconsciously put herself in your heart. Perhaps Reggie had a role in that as well. Since he's the elder brother, then he would obviously remember her…"

"And follow in _her_ footsteps…" Paul noted, but paused. He was feeling very uncomfortable with this conversation all along, but he had about reached his breaking point by now. "Okay, look, we're getting nowhere on this. Talk about Castform not drying my clothes fast enough, why don't you?"

Conway looked over to where Castform was tending to the clothes. "That won't be necessary, Paul," he said with a smile. Conway reached over and felt them to determine how dry they actually were. He nodded approvingly at his Pokémon. "It seems we're nearly done in that department. Now you can comfortably walk to the Pokémon Center and get Weavile taken care of. Good job, Castform."

"Fooooorm! Cast, cast!" cheered the tiny Weather Pokémon, ceasing its Ember and floating over to its trainer. Conway patted Castform on the head approvingly, and then dug a pink Poffin out of his bag.

"You earned a treat, little guy," Conway said sweetly to his Pokémon. Castform happily accepted the meal and murmured noises of contentment as it ate the sweet bread.

"Good grief…" Paul muttered. "You really _are_ going to try for a Contest eventually."

Conway grinned at Paul. "Oops, caught me red-handed. Yes, I think Castform will make for an exciting show. With its numerous abilities with the elements, I can learn about appreciating the true beauty of Pokémon live on the stage. I imagine it's quite different from seeing it on TV or from the crowd stands."

Paul crossed his arms again, frowning disapprovingly. "You're just hoping to meet that girl again. Don't try to hide it. Really, for meeting her just once…"

"Twice," Conway corrected. "I ran into Dawn and the others at the Summer School event just recently. We were on opposing teams, but that did not stop myself and Dawn from indulging in our enjoyment of being reunited… I even impressed her when I wiped the floor with Jesselinda that one time…"

"Summer School…?" Paul quietly wondered to himself, before shrugging Conway off. "Fine, so you met her twice. That's still a stretch. And please, spare me the details. I honestly don't care what happened in a Summer School."

"Love and friendship: that's the key," Conway said. "The key to success with your Pokémon, your aspirations, and your life. Unless I'm mistaken, Wallace himself believes in this philosophy. I would be overjoyed to see Dawn once more, but I honestly would be interested in taking part in a Contest soon, even if she isn't there." He patted Castform on the head once more before bringing out its Pokéball. "That must've worn you out. Have a nice, long rest." And with that, Castform returned to its ball.

Paul shook his head and sighed. "I feel even less at ease than I did before, thanks to you."

Conway just shrugged and smirked. "Just remember that I saved your life and prevented your imminent pneumonia. Your clothes are dry now, so go ahead and change back into them."

"Again," Paul said drolly. "Get out of here and I will."

Conway leaned away and chuckled. "Same old, same old with the Pyramid King's son…"

Suddenly, a voice boomed from an intercom linked to all areas of the ship. "Attention, passengers. We are now arriving at Canalave City's port. All passengers must gather their belongings and leave their quarters and prepare to disembark. Passengers will depart from the ship in approximately five minutes. Please remember to bring your umbrellas, as the conditions have worsened and the heavy rain has resumed. That is all. Thank you for choosing Canalife Cruising."

"So we're here," Conway noted. "You have an umbrella?"

Paul gathered his clothing and grumbled at Conway's question. Truthfully, he didn't have one, but didn't want to admit this out loud… unfortunately for him, Conway was an expert in reading expressions.

"I see," Conway said, taking Paul's silence as a "no". "Well, it's your lucky day. I have one. I'll accompany you to the Pokémon Center. You'd better hurry up and get dressed, now. Come along, Slowking."

Conway gathered his belongings and exited the room, with Slowking following him.

Paul let out a heavy sigh after Conway left, and proceeded to change back into his original outfit. "At this rate, I'm never going to get rid of that freak…"

A few minutes later, Paul was fully dressed and prepared to leave. With the replacement clothes in his other hand, he exited the room and headed towards the boarding area. Much as he loathed admitting it, it felt nice to have warm, dry clothes on again after spending almost the entire morning soaking wet and cold. He was tired of that, and much as Paul wanted to get rid of Conway… the fact that he had an umbrella while Paul himself did not made him desperate to stay warm and dry again. Even though his clothes were restored, Paul still found himself sneezing at random intervals. The clothes gradually felt warmer and warmer as he continued to walk his way out of the ship.

He was feeling feverish.

Eventually, Paul found the line on the way out of the ship and Conway was right there waiting for him, but Slowking was absent.

"Oh good, you made it," Conway said with a grin. "The Pokémon Center is just a short walk from the port. I assume we both know the way. I'll keep the both of us dry." Having said that, Conway thrust out his umbrella (not set up yet, obviously) for Paul to see.

"Lovely," Paul said, flatly. He offered Conway the clothes he loaned him. "Here's your stuff back."

"Well, _thank you_," Conway said, in an exaggerated flattered and grateful tone. "It's nice to know my backup clothes came in handy." He accepted them from Paul and stuffed them in his own bag.

Paul looked around, slightly confused. "Uh… where is Slowking?"

Conway sighed. "With a line like this, Slowking's size tends to disturb groups of people in small, closed spaces like this, so I had to return him to his Pokéball. "He'll be alright, though."

Paul just murmured an "Mmhm" and looked around the ship as he quickly became bored from the slow-moving line. Finally, Paul and Conway were disembarking. Conway opened up his umbrella, which was conveniently large enough to cover both him and Paul sufficiently.

"Just stay close," Conway advised. "You're at ease now because you know for sure I greatly prefer the women, correct?"

"_Don't_ talk like we're friends," Paul insisted. He intended to sound as harsh as he possibly could. "Let's just get to the Pokémon Center so we can get this over with. I've got business here. Urgent business."

"The Canalave City Gym, right?" Conway assumed. "Gonna fight Byron?"

Paul looked at Conway strangely. His accurate assumptions were getting disturbing now. "So you know I'm collecting badges here…"

Conway merely shrugged as the pair walked through Canalave City. "Just an educated guess. You're clearly an adversary of Ash Ketchum, and I know for a fact he's collecting badges. That's leaving out the fact that most trainers that do come here do so to fight for the Mine Badge. For the average trainer, Canalave's a rather dull city to hang around in."

That brought up a detail in the back of Paul's mind that just then came to the fore. "So why exactly are you traveling here?" he asked.

"For the library, of course," Conway said happily. "I often go to Canalave whenever I hear the Library's acquired some interesting new books. That's the main reason why I'm here now. They've always got some great, informative books about the legendary Pokémon in this region, as well as others."

Paul slumped his head down slightly. "Of course. That should have been obvious…"

"I'd love to watch your Gym Battle, though," Conway mentioned. He sounded rather honest.

"Uh…" Hearing that made Paul uncomfortable again. "Why?"

"I want to see what it's like," Conway explained. "You know, in case I want to do one myself someday."

The Freelancer talk again. It was giving Paul a headache… or was it that nagging fever of his?

"I don't suppose there's a way I can force you from _not_ going," Paul grumbled. "Free will and all that. Do whatever you want, but back off, alright? I don't need a sidekick. This is _my_ journey. You need to find your own path and stick with it, because I can guarantee you'll never be the second coming of Wallace."

Conway scoffed at the idea of being considered a sidekick. "I agree, sidekick definitely isn't me. How about co-star, then? We'll split it evenly, fifty-fifty. Sound good?"

"_In your dreams,_" Paul stated stiffly and loudly. "Now where in the world is that Pokémon Center?"

Conway pointed straight ahead of them. "We're here now. Go inside and get Weavile healed up. I should probably give poor Castform a boost after what it did to dry your clothes…"

Paul glared at Conway. "You always find the perfect excuse to stick to me like glue now. What is _with _you?!"

"I have my reasons, Paul," Conway simply replied. "I have my reasons. Shall we go in, now?"

Paul had nothing to say to that. They both entered the Pokémon Center. It was a messy and annoying ordeal for Paul, but it wasn't a total loss, as he managed to get to his desired location right on time, just as he originally wanted.

After giving Weavile's Pokéball to Nurse Joy, Paul went to look out at the window. For just a brief moment, he wondered if Reggie would actually fulfill his end of the bargain on this challenge the two of them were issued by their father.

He wondered if Reggie really, truly abandoned his breeding center to train for the inevitable fight ahead. Paul at least had sufficient time to prepare for his battle with Brandon. Reggie, on the other hand… he had no way of knowing. He would have to fight as soon as Brandon captured Regigigas. The lack of communication between father and sons prevented Reggie from even having an idea of when his time would come.

If he lost, Paul swore to write Reggie off forever. In hindsight, this was a very unfair disadvantage for Reggie. Paul knew that. A small part of him felt guilty for only adding on to the pressure Reggie was undeniably suffering from… but the rest of Paul disregarded that brotherly sentiment in favor of success and progress… and most importantly, defeating his emotionally-stunted father.

Paul wasn't exactly sure what he would gain after getting a Brave Symbol… if anything would truly be resolved should he earn one. But for Paul… that day would not come to him for a long time. Reggie was the one on borrowed time.

* * *

And it was true. Reggie had to make the most of the limited time he had. Reggie was no fool; he knew his father was an expert in the art of finding rare or legendary Pokémon. It would only be a matter of time before Regigigas would be captured. Maylene's pep talk lifted all of his guilt for abandoning his breeding center for an indeterminate period of time.

Now, there was no turning back. Reggie stood solidly in a broad, grassy field. The rain was pouring there as well, but not as heavily as it was in Jubilife and Canalave City. Mt. Coronet stood mightily nearby Reggie's training area.

All of his Pokémon were out and ready for the intense training they never truly had. Staraptor and Marowak stood strong and sturdy as they awaited orders from their trainer. Ampharos seemed a mite bit confused about the ordeal, and Swalot stared blankly at its trainer, wondering what was going on in his mind. Bibarel seemed to be the only one not paying attention, preferring to look up at the rain instead, gaping.

Infernape was right next to Reggie. It seemed somewhat wary of Reggie's hardened expressions.

After a long period of silence, Reggie spoke. "What you're all about to go through may be the hardest training you've ever endured. I know it's been… several years since I've been a trainer. But father issued a challenge to me that I cannot refuse. It's all on his terms, so I have no idea when he will be calling for me. We must make the most of the precious little time we have before father captures Regigigas. I'm very sorry that I have to do this to you all… but it's the only way we'll be strong enough to face father. Please… please forgive me, everyone."

He hadn't even done anything yet, and Reggie was already apologizing to his Pokémon. They looked to him, confused, mumbling a bit. Reggie knew that in a time constraint, his usual methods of training would be inefficient. If he failed this time, he may never again get another chance of achieving the closure he desired for so long… as well as the respect of his father. The acknowledgement… Reggie hungered for it for several years since his mother died.

It pained him so greatly to do things this way. In his heart, he felt it wasn't right to go about it this way. But in order to make progress, Reggie had to leave his doubts behind him and focus solely on the future… and solely on gaining more power.

He was going to have to take a page out of Paul's book this time.

Reggie had his eyes closed all the while this processed through his mind, after asking for forgiveness. The rain had already drenched him and his Pokémon, and the wind was picking up. Inwardly, the true Reggie screamed to turn back, but was silenced by the raw desire for a prize he sought for several years ago. And this wasn't materialistic… this was for the sake of his family. He only hoped his success would make up for what he would do today.

Finally, Reggie opened his eyes and faced his Pokémon. All of them looked effectively startled as they noticed Reggie's gentle, loving eyes turn into hardened, borderline-soulless ones. One could see a much clearer resemblance to his younger brother, as well as his father at this moment. He forced his transformation upon himself, and his Pokémon were at a loss as to what to do about it.

They were his long-time companions… all they could do was simply trust him.

"Ampharos," Reggie stated in a sharp, emotionless tone. "You, Bibarel, and Marowak will have a free-for-all battle. Show no mercy to each other, even if you injure one another. Keep going until you can no longer move." He looked to Staraptor and Swalot. "I want you two to do the same. Don't hold back and regard each other as mortal enemies. Put all of your strength into your moves."

He finally looked to Infernape, his Starter Pokémon… the one that had been with him longer than any of the others.

"Infernape," he said, still lacking emotion, yet spoke more quietly. "You will fight me. You will do so like the others. Hold back, and I'll personally make sure you regret it. Our methods of practice in the past never included direct combat. I believe this is what we're lacking; the missing link. Don't worry yourself with hurting me, Infernape… because I won't shed a tear when I defeat you."

Infernape was paralyzed with such scathing words, but it wasn't standing there for long, as Reggie immediately dove in to punch Infernape across the face. Infernape was sent reeling back a few feet. A mark was already on its face.

"You're part Fighting-type, aren't you?!" Reggie shouted out. "Fight me, then!!"

That strike across the face _hurt_. Infernape still wasn't certain what was going on, but it knew this was not the Reggie who loved and cared for it throughout their adventures in Sinnoh, Kanto, Johto, and Hoenn. All of those years… and it amounted to this: his pacifistic trainer was now as stiff and angry as the rest of his family. Infernape _knew_ this had to be some sort of rouse, but it had no more time to ponder that, as Reggie rushed over and kneed Infernape _hard_ in the stomach area. Infernape cried out and was sent reeling even further than last time.

It whimpered slightly, covering its injured stomach in a fetal position. Reggie was allowing no time for it to recover; he was running at his Starter Pokémon again for another attack. Infernape briefly looked to the others, who had already started engaging in grudge matches as Reggie ordered. Perhaps not as vicious as Reggie intended, but they were still following his orders. Infernape hated the thought of hurting its own trainer, who loved and nurtured it the day Professor Rowan gave it to him.

The hatred in Reggie's eyes didn't seem genuine. They seemed forced. Infernape could have sworn it saw tears spilling from Reggie's ruthless, vigilant eyes, but had no time to confirm it, as Reggie rushed his Starter again and kicked it against a boulder.

All of this, coming from Reggie… Infernape was still in disbelief. The other Pokémon paused to see this uncharacteristic carnage, but Reggie noticed the others before he began another attack on Infernape.

"Don't just stand there!!" Reggie screamed at the top of his lungs. "FIGHT!! Fight like your lives _depend_ on it!!"

Just then, a flash of lightning and a loud rumble of thunder followed somewhere nearby in the sky. The Pokémon were about to resume their brawl until that startled them.

Reggie had previously promised not to train under serious conditions… but Reggie was no longer Reggie anymore. He glared viciously at his team. "What did I just tell you?! KEEP FIGHTING!!"

The five Pokémon were startled well enough to resume what they were doing before. Infernape managed to get back to its feet, looking at Reggie like it didn't even know him anymore.

"You!" Reggie shouted, specifically at Infernape. "Stop disobeying orders… or I'll… I'll…!"

He struggled inwardly not to say it, because he honestly did not want to mean it. Something inside of Reggie snapped… he had taken on a persona that was a mix of his father's and Paul's. He could no longer think straightly on anything but fighting and gaining power.

"I'll… _release you!!_"

Infernape gasped. The other five Pokémon heard it and cried out in unison.

"**NO.**"

The thunderous, booming "no" that normally came from Brandon just came out of his son's mouth with the same level of intensity and volume.

"I'll… I'll release _all of you!!_ I swear I'll do it if you don't get back to work! Draw blood if you have to! Anything to get stronger!" He loomed over Infernape, with a frightening look on his face.

"Understand?!" He grunted, in a considerably quieter voice to refer specifically to Infernape. After another strike of lightning, Reggie prepared for another devastating punch to his Starter Pokémon. But this time… Infernape finally understood. It dodged Reggie's attack, bounced on his head to reach the other side, and flared up its natural flames to prepare itself for battle.

Reggie turned around and smirked. His fist went straight into the boulder once Infernape dodged his attack, and as a result… Reggie's hand was dripping with blood and likely fractured in a few areas.

"That's more like it," Reggie said with approval, ignoring the nigh-unbearable pain coming from his hand. "Now, come at me with all you've got, Infernape! Hit me with Close Combat, if you've got the _guts_."

The wicked grin on Reggie's face seemed so unnatural. But there was no longer time to deliberate on the matter. With all the strength Infernape had, charged Reggie into a fury of powerful punching attacks, now backing _him_ against the boulder.

After Infernape worn itself down from the attack, Reggie merely grinned, lying helplessly against the boulder. He wiped the blood coming from his mouth.

This was wrong. All of Reggie's Pokémon knew this was wrong. Reggie himself… deep down somewhere inside, knew this was wrong too. But another side of him… a side that had never been seen before, relished in the power and the violence.

The lust was overpowering Reggie's morality and logic. He stood up, approving of Infernape's attack even thought it clearly felt guilty for what it did.

"There's no turning back," Reggie reminded between his heaving. Infernape could not look to its partner in the face, but nodded nonetheless.

"Again. Let's go again," Reggie ordered. "Last man… or Pokémon… standing."

The lightning struck again.

A long, brutal night was ahead for all parties involved.

Paul, safe and sound, and relatively calm in the Pokémon Center in Canalave City, could never possibly imagine what was happening with his gentle, peaceful older brother hundreds of miles away from him that very moment.

* * *

**( TBC )**


	4. Over the Borderline!

**( Notes:**

**Well, four chapters in and I finally bring Brandon into the fray! Hopefully I've done his character justice. And how about some more familiar character cameos, huh? Though I would have to say in all honesty that Daisy, Misty, or Tracey will not have a large role in the story. They basically exist for that dramatic tension in helping Brandon get one step closer to Regigigas while Reggie _still_ isn't ready to fight him yet! The horror! I promise next chapter will be the much-hyped-by-Paul Byron battle. No way it can't be, right? Looks like I was wise to plan ahead, too; Paul seems to be set to appear in a future episode in Japan a few weeks from now while the gang starts their journey to Snowpoint City. I'll be ready to find a way to integrate that episode into the story when the time comes. **

**And ahh, Reggie. I just keep doing horrible things to the guy. I think this stunt has set him back maybe two-thousand or so steps. Still, I kind of like ol' nice guy Reggie doing a swerve heel turn in a sense. At least it's just out of insanity, right? That makes it a little better. I may have done too many scene switches in this chapter since it just doesn't feel that meaty despite its length. Guess you'll all be the judge of that. Have fun with it! )**

**

* * *

  
**

While rain plagued many parts of the Sinnoh region, Kanto was experiencing much nicer weather. Sunny weather is what Brandon preferred, as it was the best weather condition for exploration and excavating as he continued his quest to learn about and obtain rare Pokémon.

However nice the weather was, Brandon was no less displeased today. It had taken him months now, trying to find Regigigas. He had visited many cities in Kanto while battling trainers (with only victories on Brandon's end) for his coveted Brave Symbol. Samuel, Brandon's assistant, knew by now how fierce Brandon could be in battle, especially if he was doing so while he was on the hunt for something important. He'd yet to see a trainer defeat him when Brandon _wasn't_ satisfied in his own affairs. Even in the case of Ash Ketchum, the one who defeated Brandon and declined the offer to be a Frontier Brain, he only won against Brandon after he finally finished discovering the final member of the Regi trio: Regice.

Samuel wondered if the legends were indeed true if it was taking Brandon this long to find Regigigas. After all, if it was related to the other Regis he captured, Samuel assumed it would be relatively easy to figure out its location, at least. That turned out not to be the case… as there was no sign of Regigigas anywhere in the Kanto region. Most residents didn't even seem to know what such a Pokémon was to begin with.

The flying Battle Pyramid was quickly coming up upon its next destination. Brandon stood distantly from his assistant, looking down at the region below him with full intent of extracting information out of _someone_ soon. He was quickly growing impatient… for various reasons outside of simply wanting Regigigas to finally complete the Regi collection. Brandon was aware of his own ulterior motives, but pushed them to the back of his mind in order to focus on the mission. He was certain by now that his letter had reached his sons, and they were hopefully doing as he instructed. Not that the Pyramid King was going to make sure of that… he only assumed, because he knew his actions in the past would inspire his sons to work harder in order to defeat him one day.

Even in the middle of his work, he often thought of Reggie and Paul… but the thoughts were suddenly cut off.

"Brandon, sir… we've reached Cerulean City," Samuel informed. "Where exactly should we land?"

"Don't spend too much time deliberating on such a detail," Brandon sharply ordered. "A clearance in the forest just outside the city will do fine. We will make this inquiry a quick one."

Samuel looked nervous, as it was never a good sign when Brandon was already uppity and impatient so early on in the day. "Y-yes, of course… do you really think we'll find information on Regigigas here, though?"

Brandon continued to look forlornly at the scenery below him. "We must leave no stone unturned. At this rate, Regigigas might not even be in this region… and if that is the case, then there will be a problem. We will deal with that problem if and when it comes to us. Until then, do not question me. Sometimes the most important clues are right under your nose… only rarely does the searcher realize that in time."

"You're right…" Samuel said with a sigh. "We should be making landfall within a couple of minutes, then. Out of curiosity… where do you intend to go first?"

"Where I always go in major cities of Kanto," Brandon responded, as if his assistant should have already caught on by now. "The Gym."

After landing, that's exactly where Brandon headed: the Cerulean Gym.

"Cerulean City," Brandon muttered as he walked across the town. "They say a mysterious, blue aura surrounds it… yet I see nothing. Pointless flowery language…" He soon came upon a brightly-colored dome-shaped building complete with a depiction of a Dewgong. It almost resembled a circus tent or a carousel by shape and color, but Brandon was overcome with pessimism when he noticed the building was in fact the Cerulean Gym. "This really _does_ feel like a waste of time," Brandon admitted to himself. "But I cannot underestimate any potential source. This is a direly important matter."

The Pyramid King took a deep breath before entering the gym to find a giant pool before him. Decorations of Starmie and Poliwag were on the wall and there were crowd stands on each side of the pool, making the Gym seem to double as a stage for water shows. The atmosphere made Brandon flinch, but snapped out of it when he realized no one seemed to be present.

With a loud, booming voice, he decided to draw attention to himself… though he honestly thought it was highly irresponsible of a Gym Leader to not be at his or her post. "I am here to challenge the Gym Leader of Cerulean City! Show yourself now!!"

His voice echoed throughout the building. The design was convenient, as it allowed anyone not in the immediate area to hear him. Quickly, a young woman with blonde hair decorated with a single flower came walking briskly to the direction of the voice.

"Oh, hi there!" she greeted. "So, you like need something, mister?"

"Get over here immediately!" Brandon hollered. "I have no interest in carrying on a conversation across the Gym! Hurry up!" He honestly hoped this was not actually the Gym Leader…

"Okay, okay! Geez, take a pill…" she muttered as she hurried over to greet Brandon. "Here I am!" she announced cheerfully. "Can I like, do something for you, mister?"

"**NO.**"

Brandon's… 'catchphrase', so to speak, had quite an enhanced effect within the Gym. The loudness of his voice bounced across every angle of the dome and made the poor young lady's ears ring. She covered them, looking highly disturbed until the ringing stopped.

"Okay… I'm so confused right now," she admitted. "You came over here but you really don't need anything, mister? Why'd you rush me, then?!"

"First of all, do not address me as 'mister'!" Brandon commanded. "I am Brandon. That is all _you_ need to know. Please tell me you are _not_ the Gym Leader of this place."

"Well gee, I'm standing right here," she grumbled. "A little tact never killed a guy. Anyway, I used to be the Gym Leader, but now I just kinda look after the place from time to time, you know? My sisters and I are totally famous and popular, so we-"

Brandon glared. "Get to the point. Who are you?"

"The Gym Leader's big sis, no duh!" she announced in a bubbly tone. "Daisy! If you want the Gym Leader, you'll wanna talk to Misty. You want me to go get her or something?"

"Yes," Brandon gruffly affirmed. "Immediately if she is available." He inwardly prayed Misty was not like this…

"No prob, brah-"

"**Brandon.**"

"… Brandon. Right. Whatever," Daisy murmured. She then looked away and called for her sister. "Hey, Misty!! This Brandon guy wants to like, challenge you or some junk! You'd better get over here fast, 'cause he's a total ticking time bomb!"

The much older man found that incredibly rude. "What was it you were saying about tact, woman?"

"Daisy!" she adamantly amended. "I totally already told you my name!"

"Names are bothersome to remember," Brandon said. "Only those who defeat me earn my respect and my will to remember their names."

"Shut up, no way!" Daisy cried, aghast. "You're a Gym Leader?! Like who knew?!"

"A Frontier Brain," Brandon corrected. "Those who earn my Brave Symbol earn the right to be acknowledged by me by your given name."

Daisy looked intrigued. "No kidding, huh? Alright, then, how much for one of those thingies?"

"You _earn them in battle_," Brandon emphasized. He almost wished he never came into this Gym if this was what he had to deal with. "Don't waste your time and fetch me your sister."

"I'm here!" another voice cried out. Skidding to a halt was a younger, redheaded girl with a side ponytail. She looked up to see her visitor and was immediately a bit intimidated. "Sorry for the wait, sir. There was some outside business I had to tend to, and-"

"**NO.** How many times must I say this? Bran. Don," he enunciated, now completely irritated. "Not sir, not mister. Never anything like that. Now… I take it you are the Cerulean Gym Leader."

"Y-yes, s-… Brandon," Misty confirmed, looking nervous that she almost slipped up again. "Hey, can you kind of… keep it down? Your loudness is disturbing our Gym's Pokémon."

Almost on cue, Misty's Psyduck came running out into the main room, flailing and holding its head in either pain or frustration. Misty's good friend Tracey Sketchit was also over visiting and much more slowly walking his way towards the group, but was also disturbed by the loudness of Brandon's voice and soon felt the full brunt of its repercussions as Psyduck crashed into Tracey and knocked him into the pool. The Duck Pokémon was quick to follow. The others looked awkwardly at the accident before Misty rushed over to the incident.

Daisy just sighed and shook her head. "Like, bummer. We just got those floors wiped clean…"

"Tracey!! Psyduck!" Misty cried out as she helped them both out of the pool. There was little she could do about Psyduck continuing to freak out, but Tracey was considerably calmer.

"N-no worries, I'm fine… that was just quite a shock," Tracey admitted. He looked over to the newcomer. "So this is our disruptor, huh?"

"His name is Brandon," Misty told him. "Don't worry; I'll take care of this." Suddenly taking a mature approach, she walked over to Brandon again and made direct eye contact with him. "As I was saying, Brandon, yes. I am Misty, Gym Leader of Cerulean City. Are you here to challenge me for a Cascade Badge?"

Brandon stiffly shook his head. "I am here for no such thing. I am a Frontier Brain; the Pyramid King, specifically. I have defeated your Gym and earned your badge well before any of you were even born."

This seemed to shock the others; they at least knew meeting a Frontier Brain was a big deal.

"Good point, I guess," Tracey figured. "He looks a lot older than us…"

Misty nodded. "You certainly look like a strong trainer. It's a pleasure to meet you, Brandon…" She looked to the side and murmured an uncertain "I guess…" before facing him again. "So you're not here for a Gym Battle. How can I help you today?"

Brandon was thankful that the Gym Leader, while young, was considerably more mature than her older sister. It almost felt like déjà vu in a way… "I have been travelling across the Kanto region in search of information regarding a specific legendary Pokémon. I wish to know if any of you know of what I am looking for, or at least a hint as to where to find it."

"Well, uh…" Misty was uncertain again. "I've done my fair share of traveling, Brandon, but I can't guarantee I'll be able to answer your question. Do you know the name of the Pokémon?"

"According to what few records I've acquired, the name is Regigigas," Brandon said. "It is the leader of the trio that go by similar names, all of which I have captured already: Regirock, Registeel, and Regice."

"No Regiwater, huh?" Daisy wondered out of the blue. "Bummer…"

Brandon wanted this girl gone already, but heeded the Gym Leader's words to not be _too_ loud. He saw how unstable that Psyduck looked. "If you don't know anything, just say so. Don't waste my time with nonsense."

Misty sighed and shrugged. "I can't help you there, then. This is the first time I've even heard of such a Pokémon. What about you, Tracey?"

"Hm…" Tracey looked up and pondered for a moment. "I _do_ remember reading about the Regis somewhere, but I forget exactly what source it came from…"

Brandon seemed intrigued. "And who exactly are you, boy?"

"O-oh, I forgot to introduce myself!" Tracey realized, flailing. Misty chuckled and calmed him down.

"It's fine," she said. "You're the one who got knocked into the pool, remember? Ah, Daisy, maybe you'd better get a dry outfit for him…"

Daisy snapped her fingers. "Leave it to me, sis! Clothes are definitely where I shine!" With that, she ran out of the main room, allowing Brandon to sigh a breath of relief.

"Ah, thanks, you two," Tracey said, looking mildly embarrassed. Then he looked to Brandon. "I'm Tracey Sketchit. I'm a longtime friend of Misty's and currently an assistant of Professor Oak at Pallet Town. We do a lot of researching, so we've been studying about various legendaries for a while now."

"You don't say," Brandon mused, now intrigued that he had inadvertently stumbled upon a colleague of a Pokémon Professor. "Professor Oak… if anyone in Kanto could give me details on Regigigas, surely it would be him. He's a student of Rowan's, after all."

Tracey nodded. "I think he could definitely give you a lead. I've even read up a bit on the Regi trio before, but I had no idea there was a fourth. And it's the leader, you say?"

"That is what has been said," Brandon affirmed. He was officially relieved that for once, a visit to the city was not a complete waste of his time. He was finally on a path rather than desperately digging up whatever clue he could find. "Would the Professor mind terribly if I were to stop by and discuss this matter with him?"

"I don't see why not," Tracey responded. "He loves having visitors over. Right, Misty?"

Misty smiled at him. "He certainly does! I'd like to visit him, myself. It's been way too long."

It was Brandon's turn to smile. "How soon could you bring me to him, boy? I am eager to speak with him as soon as possible."

"Ah-ah, I'm Tracey, remember?" Tracey pointed out, apparently missing Brandon's policy earlier on. "Tracey Sketchit, okay?"

Brandon held out a Brave Symbol before him. "Battle me, win, and I'll give you the distinct honor of calling you by your name. Are you gutsy enough to waste my time on such a matter when I have urgent business calling?"

That sufficiently snuffed out Tracey's bravado. "O-on second thought, there's always more derogatory terms out there than 'boy'! Guess I should be thankful, r-right…?"

"Indeed," Brandon agreed. "Now, how soon can you take me to the Professor?"

"Just as soon as I get some dry clothes on, probably!" Tracey nervously uttered. "Geez, I hope Daisy didn't forget where I put my things again…"

Misty rolled her eyes. Brandon scowled once again. Even when she wasn't present, Daisy was aggravating him. For once, he was glad he never had any daughters.

* * *

Not that Brandon's sons never gave him grief. Thousands of miles away in Canalave City, Paul continued to stare out the window thoughtfully as the rain continued to pour heavily.

"Paul…?"

His mind was still on Reggie. He still wondered where he was right now, and what he was doing. If he was still at home, taking care of all those Pokémon… or if he was in some unknown location, training with the team he originally assembled for epic battles over the years. It annoyed Paul to suddenly start thinking about him, as he often didn't… but he knew this was a unique situation. He simply couldn't help but wonder about his older brother, who would soon have to face their father and surely lose again. Paul wasn't sure if he was ready to do what he threatened to do to Reggie should he lose the battle.

"Paul…?"

Reggie was out of practice; Paul knew that much. He was so out of practice that it would take quite a bit of time for him to adapt to a trainer's mindset alone. To get himself strong enough to be on his father's level… it seemed virtually impossible, now that Paul thought about it. Even Reggie knew the odds were against him, yet he allowed Paul to threaten him the way he did… and Paul wasn't quite sure why. Reggie was the only one in the family still trying to make vain attempts to keep said family together. His loss would result in Paul making Reggie's dreams of having a full family again impossible… but then again, Paul remembered that it was already impossible. There was no way to bring his mother back from the dead. Paul was too young to remember her to still mourn her today, so it didn't bother him nearly as much as it did Reggie. No matter how Paul looked at it, Reggie had unfair advantages… everywhere.

"Excuse me, Paul…?"

Paul snapped back to reality as he felt someone tapping his shoulder. He whirled around to find Nurse Joy standing right behind him with a Pokéball in her hand.

"Oh…! Uh…" Paul immediately felt awkward. He looked away from the kindly nurse. "Sorry."

"It's quite alright," Nurse Joy assured, offering him the Pokéball. "I just wanted to let you know that your Weavile is fully restored."

"Ah, yes…" Paul should have figured as much. He accepted the Pokéball and nodded to Nurse Joy. "Thank you."

Nurse Joy bowed to him. "It was my pleasure. You're welcome to rest here as long as you need to, Paul. You don't look very well…"

"That's all in your head," Paul said, brushing her off. He went to gather his things before leaving the Center. Conway, meanwhile, was watching TV. "I'm far too busy to rest at the moment."

"Don't be stealing my umbrella, now…" Conway said almost threateningly, smiling as he said so. Paul could not see his expressions due to Conway being faced the other way. "I know where you live."

"A lot of good that'll do you," Paul grumbled as he walked over to where Conway was. "You said you wanted to see my Gym Battle, right? Well, I'm going on without you since you're obviously not intent on leaving anytime soon."

Conway raised a finger and waggled it. "Not so hasty, my friend-"

"_I am not your friend!!_"

"Touchy," Conway remarked with a smirk. "Anyway, you can spare a few minutes to watch the weather report. It'll be useful to know about the conditions ahead of time so you won't end up with another incident like earlier. By the way, you still have a cold. You're going to fight Byron while you're sick?"

The focus on Paul's apparent illness was aggravating him to no end. "I'm not sick, either! All things considered, I feel completely fine!"

"Your face is all flushed," Conway pointed out. "Very feverish. You've been sneezing all day. Shall I go on?"

"No, you _shall not_," Paul said with great emphasis on the latter part of his sentence. "I'll watch the stupid weather report if you insist, since I'll be aiming for Snowpoint City after this."

Conway nodded. "That's the harshest area of Sinnoh climate-wise. It's very important to keep up-to-date on the weather of that area. Then there are preparations to consider, but we'll wait until you get your Mine Badge before going into detail on that."

Paul looked horrified. "You are _not_ following me to Snowpoint City."

"Free will says I can and shall do so," Conway claimed. "That's what you just said to me earlier today, remember?"

Paul grumbled, now wishing he hadn't said it. "Whatever. We'll deal with that obstacle as it comes. Oh, and before we leave, I need to give Weavile a little… 'pep talk' before the Gym Battle."

"Is that so?" Conway asked, amused. "Didn't you say you were going to release it?"

"I brought Weavile with me for a reason," Paul explained. "I'm testing its endurance in a Gym where it has a type disadvantage. Its performance there will tell me whether or not it deserves to stay with me."

Conway shook his head. "That's hardly fair. You know Weaviles by nature are typically glass cannons. They come in quickly, they attack quickly, but they also fall just as quickly… _especially_ to a Pokémon that gives it a distinct disadvantage."

Paul cross his arms and looked away. "You may see it as unfair, but Weavile's been with me for a long time… since I traveled Johto. I caught it as a Sneasel and brought it up to be the powerhouse it is today. But regardless of the time I invested into it, I can always find a stronger Ice-type or a stronger Dark-type to replace it if I wanted to. So if it wants to make amateur mistakes and almost kill me and itself in the process, it can do so _without_ me."

"Hm…" Conway considered this, but then shrugged. "Nope, sorry. It's still unfair in my eyes."

"Then it's a good thing your eyes don't matter," Paul said snidely. "Must be why you wear glasses."

"Low blow, Paul," Conway said with a sigh. "Low blow. –Ah! It's on, now. Come sit down."

Paul rolled his eyes and sat down on the couch with Conway. He sneezed in a rather untimely fashion, as it allowed Conway to smirk and continue to believe he was in the right about Paul being sick. Paul simply grumbled and focused on the TV. "This had better be quick…"

"Welcome back to Sinnoh Now! Your one-stop place for all topics hot and current happening in the Sinnoh region!" After the Sinnoh Now logo appeared, it faded to Rhonda sitting cheerfully at the news desk. "It's eight minutes past the hour, so it's time to cover what's going on in the world of weather! Or in Sinnoh's world, at least!" Rhonda added with a giggle.

The screen switched to a radar map of the Sinnoh region with all present systems displayed in their designated and current areas. Rhonda was at the side to go into detail of what was going on.

"As many of you already know, Jubilife City was slammed by a brief but powerful thunderstorm last night! Many had lost power, but as of now, it has since been restored. In its wake, the thunderstorm has left us a seemingly endless mass of heavy rain that covers Oreburgh City, Jubilife City, Canalave City, and the southern parts of Floaroma Town! Well, Floaroma Town certainly never complains when its beautiful flowers get a nice drink from the heavens, and they'll be getting their wish as the system continues to push up north. By the evening, the showers in the Jubilife and Canalave areas should move out completely. It'll still be cloudy, but at least it won't be such a nightmare to walk outside, right? Am I right?!"

"This woman is so irritating," Paul muttered. "No meteorologist should be this peppy."

Conway simply chuckled to himself. "I seriously doubt she has the qualifications of a meteorologist. She's just a weather girl who loves her job, apparently."

"As I said, this system is pushing north, so by nightfall, Iron Island and the Snowpoint area should start getting pounded. And as conditions in Snowpoint City have been worsening as of late with record-breaking low temperatures this week, a storm like this will only further dent that beautiful but frigid city! But you Snowpoint citizens are tough! You'll fight strongly to the end! … on that note, any Pokémon trainers aiming for Snowpoint City should use extreme caution when heading up to challenge Candice, or better yet, wait until this system passes through completely. But be wary, trainers! You'll only have a short time to get to Snowpoint City after that system passes, because another one is coming up behind it!" Rhonda's announcing never ceased to be energetic, but then she suddenly looked surprised. "Oh! And we have news on another system that has branched off and is over Veilstone City as we speak!"

At the mention of his hometown, Paul's expressions hardened. Conway took notice to this as the report continued.

"Yes, it seems Veilstone City is dodging a bullet, as it will be missing the majority of the heavily severe thunderstorms that are raging through Mt. Coronet. Trainers near Mt. Coronet should beware, however! There have been several reports of cloud-to-ground lightning in the area," Rhonda spoke in an ominous voice. "And some have even reported cyclone formations! Valley-effect weather is no laughing matter, trainers! So take caution and stay indoors if you're in that area. Thankfully, the worst parts of the storm should quickly dissipate. It'll be much safer to train tomorrow, trust me!"

Paul thought he should be relieved, knowing the worst parts of the storm were missing Veilstone City entirely, but for some reason still felt as if something were wrong… or had gone wrong… or was _about_ to go wrong. Was it intuition, or was Paul simply paranoid? Paul himself had no idea. He personally didn't believe in brotherly intuition.

"No need to worry, Paul," Conway sung out. "If the severe storms missed Veilstone City, that means your brother is fine, correct?"

It was hard for Paul not to growl at Conway in annoyance. "Stealing that girl's stupid catchphrase… ah, but yes. If he chickened out on the training and stayed home, he should be fine."

Conway only smiled at the mention of Dawn. In a negative or positive light, it always brightened up his mood. "You're certain he stayed home?"

"Almost positive," Paul said, completely sure of himself. "He hasn't taken his training seriously in years. He may be too nice and ridiculously naïve, but even if he were training, he wouldn't be stupid enough to train out in areas where lightning's striking and cyclones are about."

"Why don't you give him a call so you're undeniably positive?" Conway innocently suggested.

Paul looked away abruptly. "That won't be happening. Alright, we've got our weather news." He stood up from the couch and turned the TV off. "Satisfied? Can we go now?"

Conway stood up as well, yawning and stretching himself out. "Yeah, that should do for now. Weren't you going to give Weavile that little talk, though?"

"Ah, right," Paul said, nearly forgetting about it due to his impatience. He brought out Weavile's Pokéball and glared at it. He then glanced at Conway from the corner of his eye. "I'd prefer to accomplish that without your company. Make yourself useful and assemble our belongings so we can get out of here immediately after this."

"As you wish," Conway conceded, distancing himself from Paul and gathering up everything that belonged to them.

Meanwhile, Paul went to a quiet corner, all the while glaring at the Pokéball. He thought back to the earlier events that morning… and then sneezed. He truly was beginning to not feel very well… but he shook it off, because he knew he had to be firm with Weavile in order to get his point across.

In a low, quiet voice, Paul muttered "Weavile, standby." He pressed the button and half-heartedly tossed the ball a very short distance. Out came a fully-healed Weavile, ready for battle.

"Weav…!" It shouted out with enthusiasm before seeing the dark, indignant look on its trainer's face. It quickly stood at attention, finishing its introduction with a much quieter and humbled "… Vile."

"We're at Canalave City now," Paul informed. "We'll be having our Gym Battle soon. I relied on you to get us here, Weavile, and you failed miserably. Your shortcomings almost killed _both_ of us."

Weavile recoiled from Paul's scathing tone as it began to remember the events earlier that day. Weavile had put every ounce of energy it had into that Surf and Ice Beam combination… and even beforehand, Weavile knew the mission was a risky one. It looked down to its feet in shame, being told that it did in fact fail to fully carry out Paul's orders.

Paul felt no remorse for what he was saying, however. He found every bit of it justified and refused to take any blame for the incident. "Look at me when I'm talking to you, Weavile!"

Slightly stumbling from the shock of the power in its trainer's voice, Weavile obeyed Paul and reluctantly faced Paul, now able to see the full extent of his true anger and disappointment.

"The only reason we're here now is because we had help from some outsiders," Paul explained, glaring at Conway from a distance from the corner of his eye. "What you've done is normally unforgivable. I had considered releasing you here and now."

"W-Weav…!" However tough it liked to act, Weavile always broke down if it heard this kind of threat, and it hadn't been the first time Paul threatened to release it. Distinctly, it remembered having this kind of talk shortly after Paul was completely humiliated by Cynthia in battle. However, as most of Paul's Pokémon proved to be just as useless against the Sinnoh Champion, he let it slide, knowing it was unwise to release the majority of his team all at once simply because he lost a battle that had a forgone conclusion from the beginning.

Annoyed that he was about to say something relatively nicer soon, Paul closed his eyes and refused to face his Pokémon. "However, I brought you here to fight against Byron. This was to test your endurance. Apparently, your endurance is lacking, Weavile. Real-life experiences have shown me that. Now I want to see if the same is true for Pokémon battles. Since I'm feeling generous today, I'll give you another chance and keep you on with me if you help me win this Gym Battle."

Hearing this filled Weavile with hope. It almost couldn't believe it was being given a second chance, and gratefully cheered "Wea-Wea!" to its trainer. However, Paul held out his hand and made a gesture to stop the victory celebration.

"This isn't the time to get lazy," Paul warned. "Because you didn't let me finish. I will stay true to my word: win the Mine Badge for me, and you can stay. But if you are knocked out and unable to battle at any time against Byron, I will release you immediately after this Gym Battle."

"W-Weav…" This rained on Weavile's parade. It knew it was coming up against a primarily Steel-typed Gym: a type that was resistant to Ice as well as being super-effective against Ice. The way it had been trained was to end battles quickly against Pokémon it had advantages against before its own weaknesses could be exploited. While Weavile was an expert dodger, its endurance against super-effective attacks was pitiful. This was not just as a result of Paul's method of training, but by the nature of the Weavile species itself.

However, Weavile knew what was on the line now. It made some flashy poses by jabbing at the air at lightning-quick speed with its claws, telling Paul it fully understood what must be done. "Weeeeavile!"

Paul nodded. "We're understood, then. It seems you still know when to keep your emotions in check in a tight situations; this is a good thing. I'll expect nothing but your best performance, Weavile." He held up its Pokéball. "Return."

Having finished the so-called "pep talk", Paul sighed and turned around and walked towards Conway, who was true to _his_ word and gathered both of their belongings so that they could leave the Pokémon Center immediately.

Conway still looked skeptical about Paul's decision. "Well, this is the last call," he said. "You're absolutely certain you're going through with this before taking care of your cold?"

"Will you shut up about that already?" Paul complained, grabbing his things. "I'm not sick in the least. I…" He was suddenly cut off by coughing, and Conway raised an eyebrow at him. Paul only glared back in return. "It's this stupid weather! Probably allergies. Let's just get out of here, already. Before I have an even greater urge to ditch you."

"Umbrella-less?" Conway reminded, opening up his own large umbrella. "Hah, nice try."

Paul rolled his eyes as they both exited the Pokémon Center en route to the Canalave Gym. Along the way, they passed the library, which Conway couldn't help but gaze at as they continued to walk by it.

"Hm, since I'm doing all of these favors for you, Paul… may I make a request?" Conway asked straightforwardly.

"Huh?" Paul looked up and realized the building they were passing by. "Oh, right. The library. Well… I've had enough of traveling from city to city today. Spending the night here should be fine."

Conway smiled. Cruel as Paul was, at least he knew how to hold up his end of a bargain. "Would you like to join me after your battle, Paul? It might be worth your while."

Paul huffed at such an idea. "Why would I want to do that?"

"Because, Canalave's Library is notorious for holding several informative books on rare and powerful Pokémon, like I told you before," Conway reminded. "You're certainly one who's interested in maximizing your team's power. There may be something of relevance to you; you never know. It's worth a look."

Then, it hit Paul. Conway had said the library contained information about legendary Pokémon. His father was on the hunt for a legendary Pokémon, and Reggie was on borrowed time. Paul wondered if perhaps there was information on Regigigas within the library that would be unavailable to Brandon, who was stuck far away in Kanto. If he were to obtain the crucial information first, Paul would be the one in control of both his father and his older brother if he withheld the information. Perhaps out of mercy, he would let Reggie know about the information but withhold it from Brandon until Reggie was ready to battle him. He would find it pathetic of Reggie to be so reliant on him, but Paul wondered if he would be as thankful for such a merciful act if he and his brother switched positions. While Paul held no respect for his brother, he borderline despised his father. He would always side with Reggie before siding with Brandon.

"Goodness," Conway remarked. "Your mind flies off to the moon even quicker than mine does."

"Hm…?" Paul blinked as his thoughts were disturbed. Instead of taking offense to Conway's teasing, he looked to his acquaintance very seriously. "Well, for once… you have a point," Paul admitted. "I'll go to the library with you after my Gym Battle."

"Oh, delightful!" Conway exclaimed, possibly overjoyed. "It'll be so much more fun to have a reading partner."

Paul shook his head. "I'd rather do the research on my own. I have reasons to go there rather than filling my head with even more useless Pokémon trivia."

"Is that so?" Conway asked, looking interested. "I'll have to ask you about that after your battle, because look where we are already…"

Paul looked up and found himself facing the Canalave Gym. Holding down another cough, he grinned and looked upwards. "Excellent. Everything is going according to plan. Get ready, Byron. I'm going to wipe the floor with you."

"Ooh, ominous," Conway tauntingly commented.

Paul grumbled and made his way inside. "Shut it, Conway." Conway himself had nothing to say to that; he simply followed the younger trainer into the Gym to witness the showdown that was about to take place.

* * *

Elsewhere, near Mt. Coronet, the severe thunderstorms still raged on. The wind gusts were strong enough to be almost deafening and Reggie's Pokémon were having a hard time being able to stay on the ground, let alone fight as viciously as he ordered them to.

As they threw their attacks at each other, Reggie's Pokémon still couldn't quite comprehend why they had to train this way. This went against everything Reggie had ever taught them in the past, and even if it was for a special occasion… never before had they seen their trainer mentally snap.

By this point, Infernape was severely injured. It was craving for a Potion or a Sitrus Berry, or _anything_… even a break from the fighting. It found itself backed up against a tree. Infernape found the will to fight its trainer and caretaker, but still could not immerse itself in the rage of battle the way Reggie forced himself to. However, all reservations had left Reggie at this point, and he was clearly no longer himself. Infernape never thought him to possibly look so fierce, but with every strike of lightning that shot across the sky, the kind breeder seemed every bit as dark as his younger brother.

Reggie himself was battered, bruised, bloody (and still rendered with a fractured hand that he insisted on fighting with, no matter how much it hurt him), and was finally looking exhausted. He still intended to follow through on his promise: to fight Infernape until only one was left standing. He grinned to Infernape, having it cornered, as he prepared his next attack.

"So, this is how it goes down…" Reggie uttered between breaths. "Seems like I'm the winner. That reflects horribly on you and the rest. You'll _never_ be successful if you can't beat m-" He suddenly paused. Infernape looked up, feeling as if something wrong was about to happen.

Ampharos abruptly ceased the fighting with Bibarel and Marowak to look towards the Reggie/Infernape battle scene. It could also sense disaster approaching. "Ampha!!" It screeched, putting all battling to a halt. Even Reggie slightly heard its Pokémon's cries over the howling winds, but then came the biggest warning sign of all.

Reggie could feel his hair standing on end.

He whirled around quickly to see his Starter Pokémon lying against the tree. It was clear what was going to happen. But Reggie was born from a man who didn't know the meaning of the word "quit". If there was anything he truly inherited from his father, it was that. Instinctively, he leaped towards the tree to shove Infernape out of the immediate area, the latter of which was in too much pain to escape on its own.

Reggie succeeded, pushing Infernape away from the tree and ended up rolling it down a hill on accident. However, it was a convenient accident, as the next thing that happened was a flash of light and a sound reminiscent of an exploding bomb.

The shockwave of a lightning bolt striking the tree was strong enough to knock all Pokémon off their feet as they watched in horror of what they were witnessing. It was instantaneous, but to Reggie's Pokémon, time felt as if it slowed down for them all. But eventually, the blinding light receded. Residents of the more distant areas of Sinnoh heard the ominous thunder, and those closer were witness to the bolt of lightning, though did not see it strike anything. Even in Veilstone City, the lightning was strong enough to send out a brief flash across the sky, disturbing citizens who happened to be outdoors at that time.

Maylene was one of those people; she was in the backyard feeding the breeding center's Pokémon. Knowing Reggie was out there somewhere, though not sure where specifically, she became concerned.

"He'd know better than to be out in this," Maylene acknowledged. "But it wouldn't hurt to call him, just to make sure he's alright…"

It was a very good decision on the Veilstone Gym Leader's part, because the trainer who usually knew better was now lifelessly on the ground in front of a tree that was almost completely split in half due to the lightning strike. Reggie was effectively fried; potentially _fatally_ fried.

His Pokémon were quick to rush over to him, and Infernape quickly climbed the hill to see what had happened. They all cried out to Reggie, hoping he would hear them, but much to their horror, he did not respond in any way. Staraptor nudged its beak against Reggie's face in hopes of getting some kind of reaction, but its trainer remained silent and still.

While Bibarel tried to assist Staraptor in reviving their trainer, Infernape could faintly hear a ringing sound in the distance coming from the direction of where Reggie left his belongings prior to the beginning of the training session. Knowing the Pokémon could not help their trainer alone in this desolate area, Infernape rushed over to find that Reggie's PokéGear was indeed ringing.

Being a Pokémon, Infernape did not exactly know how human technology worked, but had watched Reggie use such gadgets several times over the years. There was only one button to press, so Infernape went ahead and pressed it. It looked excited when it could hear Maylene's voice from the other end.

"Reggie? Are you there…? It's… it's Maylene… w-wait, what is that _noise?_" What she was hearing was the fierce wind still blowing about the place. It didn't take her long to figure that out.

"I can't believe this! Reggie, do you have any idea how dangerous it probably is over there?!" Maylene shouted in frustration. "You know better than to do this!" Suddenly, she realized she should have heard Reggie reply by now. She grew worried. "R-Reggie…? Say something…"

Infernape easily recognized Maylene's voice, but knew Reggie was unable to come to answer the call in his condition. Not able to speak the human language, Infernape hoped its panicked cries across the PokéGear would get through to Maylene and tell her that something has indeed gone wrong.

"Huh?" Maylene was confused. "Infernape, what're you doing with Reggie's PokéGear?" She was more surprised that a Pokémon would know how to even use one, but as she continued to listen to Infernape's cries, she gasped. "Y-you sound… really freaked out, Infernape! Did something happen to Reggie?!"

"Infernape, nape!" Infernape yelped, trying to make it sound like an affirmative sound. Regardless of that, its worry was well-reflected in its voice, and Maylene could tell that something had gone wrong. Immediately, she went over to a computer while continuing to talk to Infernape on the PokéGear.

"Listen to me, Infernape, you have to stay on the line with me until I can trace where your call is coming from!" Maylene instructed. "If Reggie really is in trouble, I have to find out where you are so we can help him!"

She was handy enough with the computer to work with it while under pressure, at least, which was a good thing. Not able to find out what happened to Reggie through Infernape worried her sick over what became of him. If he were lost, if he were already dead… but just as that morbid thought crossed her mind, she got a lock on the signal. "Got it! Thanks for staying on with me, Infernape. I'm gonna hang up now so I can call for back-up, and we'll be right over! If Reggie's there with you, do whatever you can to keep him safe! I'll see you soon!"

Maylene bit her lip nervously as she hung up and started calling for reinforcements. "Near the base of Mt. Coronet… that's exactly where the worst part of the storm is. Sounded like Infernape was right in the thick of it, too. Oh… I just hope I'm not too late!"

* * *

"_Reggie…"_

His eyes were still closed, but he was oddly conscious. At least, he was conscious enough to hear and recognize the ethereal voice calling out to him.

"Who…?"

"_Reggie…"_

"… Is that…?" He whispered out in vain. Try as he might, Reggie was unable to open his eyes, but smiled when a warm light enveloped him.

"_Open your eyes."_

"No… way…" Reggie mumbled out of disbelief rather than denying the request. "You couldn't be… but if you're… talking to me, then I…"

"_Open your eyes and you will be able to see me for as long as you like,"_ the distinctively female voice gently told him. Already warm and comfortable, Reggie felt even better when a familiar pair of arms wrapped around his body. He remembered being held like this before. _"My sweet Reggie…"_

That cinched it for him. "M-Mom…"

He still couldn't see her, but the arms holding him felt distinctly like hers. The soft and gentle voice perfectly matched hers. Reggie swore he could feel her long, dark violet hair against his chin once more. Though his eyes were closed, Reggie's face could not possibly express more joy than they were now. "Y-you're really… you came back…"

"_I am afraid that is not so,"_ the voice, presumably his mother's, regretfully informed. _"It was not I who came back, but you who left."_

The smile faded away from Reggie's face. "I… I died… trying to save Infernape…"

Those soft, familiar hands stroked Reggie's back comfortingly as he let it all sink in. _"I've been lonely for many years without you and the others, Reggie… things have not turned out as I wished, did they?"_

Reggie reflected on what he had inadvertently left behind him: an emotionally-distant father who refused to acknowledge hi s own sons as anything more than opponents, and a younger brother who forgot his mother's love entirely to the point where he threw the very idea of love out in favor of power. All three were far away from each other… nothing like the family their mother wished for them to continue being after her death. "I… I'm so sorry, mom…" Reggie apologized as a tear fell down his still-closed eye. "I did everything I could to keep us together, but…"

"_Sometimes, the things we wish for are unreasonable things,"_ his mother explained. _"Before I lost my life, I constantly wished for a stronger body… one not so susceptible to the illnesses that put an end to me. But I could not change that any more than I could stop the sun from rising and setting, Reggie."_

"Sometimes, life isn't fair… I learned that the hard way," Reggie admitted. "But still… I was powerless to stop our family from shattering. You were the glue who held us together, mom. I wished with all my strength to become that glue in your place… a-and I failed you. I failed you, and I failed dad… I'm even a failure in the eyes of Paul."

There was a brief period of silence before his mother responded. _"You've grown so much, my dear… but even now, you say the most childish things sometimes."_

"That's… that's because…" Reggie attempted to cry out. "I had to grow up so soon!"

"_You honestly wanted to become a breeder, just like me?"_

"I didn't realize it after I lost to father," Reggie admitted. "I wanted to continue where you left off… accomplish what you couldn't because you died too soon…"

"_Yet you lost your life attempting to do what your father and brother do,"_ his mother pointed out. _"Because you were so desperate to prove your point, to honor me… how can you imagine a mother would feel, knowing she lost her son like that?"_

"I-I'm sorry," Reggie said, ashamed of himself. "I guess… I deserve to die after what I did. I threw away all of my years of breeder experience to essentially torture my Pokémon, because I knew my usual methods weren't going to get me anywhere… but that's no excuse for what I've done."

"_I see you have yet to open your eyes,"_ his mother noted, without even having to look at her son's face. _"You regret going out this way."_

"Of course I do!" Reggie exclaimed. "Now I'll never be able to carry out your work, and Paul and dad… they'll only get worse from here. All the same… I've been dying to see you again, mom…"

"_You should not be content with your position if you feel you have unfinished business in your life,"_ his mother noted. _"Of course, I do not feel content in the least… but I was powerless to fight the toxins in my weak body. But, Reggie… you were born healthy and strong like your father. You aren't held back with physical limitations."_

"I'm not…?" Reggie was confused. "But… but you said I died…"

"_You're within the light, but weigh yourself down with your regrets, your unfinished business… and never open your eyes. Because you have a strong body, you can survive this. But you mustn't give into temptation, Reggie. Do not give up your chance to return to your life just to look at your mother,"_ she warned him. _"In my arms… this should be enough…"_

Reggie sighed. "You think I actually serve a purpose? I single-handedly erased every good deed I've ever done in my life by pulling the stunt I did today! Who would even want me back now?"

"_You only believe so, but your Pokémon forgive you… your friends and family will all forgive you. They know what you are going through, and you are greatly admired for persevering,"_ his mother told him. _"I will have a hard time forgiving you if you give in to temptation now, Reggie. No matter what you've done, you did so with your heart in the right place. Keep trying to succeed… because your loss now will inevitably bring the rest of the family into the afterlife sooner than you think. I can feel it…"_

"W-wait, what?" Reggie was confused, but did as his mother instructed and did not open his eyes, though he could not deny the temptation was great. "What are you talking about?"

Reggie's spiritual mother released her hold on her son and set her hands on his shoulders, leaning over to kiss his forehead. _"You must focus on bringing your spiritual being back into your body before it is too late. I fear your brother was not born to be as fortunate as you are. You must remain alive to guide him… save him."_ She began to send him down. Where, exactly, was not apparent, but in some metaphorical way, it seemed Reggie was being pulled back into the tangible world.

"_Remember that I love all of you… and I still remain alive in your hearts…"_

_

* * *

  
_

"MOM!!" Reggie cried out, reaching out to his mother but no longer able to feel her. In his desperation, he tried to get a glimpse of his mother before they were separated again, but all Reggie saw before him was a hospital bed with him in it in a hospital room. "Huh…?"

He heard some joyous gasps of relief nearby. Reggie looked to his side to see all of his Pokémon and Maylene sitting next to his bed, finding it a miracle that their dear friend had come back to life against the odds.

"Maylene…?" He asked out loud, just to make sure he wasn't hallucinating. Fighting back the tears, Maylene nodded to confirm this was reality. Reggie looked to his Pokémon. "Infernape… all of you…"

They were battled and bruised, all worse for wear due to the training regimen (especially Infernape). The bad parts of reality flew at Reggie like bullets as he began to look depressed. Though he managed to sit up in bed all on his own, Reggie noticed the various amounts of bandages wrapped around his body. His entire right hand was bandaged up; the one he had fractured during his fight with Infernape. His other Pokémon were bandaged up appropriately.

Just to be sure, Reggie did a full scan of the room once more. "Mom…? Where's…"

This worried Maylene. "Reggie… don't you remember?" she asked quietly. "She's…"

"Dead…" Reggie finished for her. He could have sworn he was just talking to her, but now he knew what happened. He remembered what he did for the sake of strength and power. It was disturbing for the Pokémon and Maylene to see the usually-calm and collected Reggie shaking as he brought his hands to his face. He looked as if he were about to sob.

"She's… sh-she's dead, and I… that was just a…"

Maylene shook her head, now unable to fight back her tears now that she was seeing Reggie's. "It must have been an awful nightmare… I'm sorry, Reggie…"

Reggie vehemently shook his head. "N-no! It was good! She was talking to me…! She held me and kissed me… a-and she told me to keep going!"

Now hi s Pokémon were officially worried again. Maylene was determined to keep him back in reality where he belonged, however. "Reggie, they said you were struck by lightning… you must have suffered one of those near-death experiences. Your life flashing before your very eyes, your…"

"No!!" Reggie cried out in defiance. "I wasn't reliving the past! She was telling me not to let myself die! None of you believe me, do you?!"

Maylene inched back a bit; she was officially afraid, as she never saw this side of Reggie before. By now, it was a wonder if _anyone_ had ever seen this side of Reggie, as his Pokémon certainly hadn't. "Reggie, please…" she pleaded. "Calm down. We're all so happy to have you back…"

"Stop lying!" he spat. Reggie's eyes hardened; he was looking similar to the psychotic state he was in before he was struck by lightning once more. Maylene could now see a true resemblance of Brandon and Paul within him… both inside and out. "You're not 'all' happy to have me back! Where's my dad, huh?! Where's my brother?! Absolutely **nowhere!!**"

Just to show his anger and frustration, Reggie's non-broken hand slid behind the side table and proceeded to knock everything off to crash onto the hard hospital floor. Maylene flinched as she heard something break. Under her breath, she weakly begged, "Reggie… please stop…"

"You know why they're not here! You know _exactly_ why!" Reggie shouted, pointing at Maylene. "Neither of them couldn't care less about me! I'm the embarrassment of their family! And being the weak link of this family will _never_ give me the victory I need! I'll make them both regret the-"

"What's going on here?!" shouted a Nurse Joy approaching the scene. She noticed the mess Reggie had made and the furious state he was in. "Oh, thank goodness, you survived!"

Maylene rushed over to Nurse Joy. "He's alive, but he's snapped! I-I don't know what triggered it! What's wrong with him?!"

Nurse Joy looked shocked at this, but regained her calmness quickly. "Perhaps that's the anesthetic wearing off…"

Maylene flinched as she watched Reggie continue to destroy whatever he could get his hands on. "With all due respect, Nurse Joy, I don't think pain's the only reason! This isn't like him at all…"

"Perhaps you're right," Nurse Joy admitted, taking out a syringe full of powerful anesthesia. "Regardless, we'll need to calm him down before we can do a proper diagnosis. Can you help restrain him for me, Maylene?"

Initially, the thought frightened her, but her Lucario also happened to be present at the time, and he glared at her. That was enough to straighten her out.

"Lucario and I can both do it; no problem. Do what you have to, Nurse Joy. Let's go, Lucario!"

Both Gym Leader and Pokémon restrained Reggie from both sides, but were surprised at the hidden physical strength Reggie possessed. He was harder to hold back that it looked. "P-please hurry!" Maylene begged as she struggled. "I didn't think he had _this _kind of strength within him…!"

"Of course," Nurse Joy replied, going over to inject the syringe into Reggie's arm. Within moments, Reggie's resistance stopped and slouched, looking and feeling limp. "There. That should keep him sedated long enough for us to figure out what's ailing him."

Maylene stepped back, now looking upset. "In all of the years I've known him, I've _never_ seen him fly into a fit of rage before… his dad and brother covered that area well enough. But Reggie… huh?"

Infernape tapped Maylene to get her attention. "What is it, Infernape?"

"Innnnfer," it mumbled, gesturing to its own wounds before pointing to Reggie's.

While examining Reggie, Nurse Joy paused. "I believe Infernape is trying to remind you about the wounds Reggie sustained prior to getting struck by lightning. The patterns matched Infernape's perfectly."

Maylene gasped and glared at Infernape. "What?! How could you do that to your own trainer when he's-"

"You didn't let me finish," Nurse Joy interrupted. "Reggie was undoubtedly attacked by Infernape several times. But at the same time… the nature of his fractured hand seems to be self-inflicted."

Infernape nodded.

"On the other hand, Infernape was also injured although it was not struck by lightning. While you were in the waiting room, we analyzed the wounds of all the Pokémon, and…"

"And? What?" Maylene asked, not sure if she wanted to know.

"All of the Pokémon aside from Infernape were fighting each other. If Reggie was out training like you said, that isn't out of the ordinary. But the beating that Infernape suffered… all of that came from Reggie himself."

Maylene could almost feel herself going faint. "What…? So then… then you two were fighting each other…?" She looked down with a pained look to Infernape. With a solemn nod, Infernape answered her question without a word.

"Reggie must have requested it himself," Nurse Joy speculated. "Especially after seeing that fiery attitude before we sedated him… he's hit a sudden violent streak contrary to his nature."

"You… mean to say that…" Maylene uttered before sitting down, but her eyes were wide open. "Reggie was like this _before_ the lightning struck him?"

Nurse Joy nodded. "I'm afraid so. He didn't act strangely around you before leaving his breeding center in your care, did he?"

"Not at all!" Maylene exclaimed. "He was the perfectly happy, casual, normal Reggie we all knew and loved… from the moment I arrived at this place and well after he left it to me. Thing is, it hasn't even been a full day since he left to train…"

"Would you say he's had a stressful life?" Nurse Joy asked her as she continued to examine her sedated patient. "I'm aware his mother died a few years ago… his father is that famous Frontier Brain…"

Maylene sighed. "He's handled his life better than I would've if it were me in his shoes. The family's split apart and hated each other ever since she died. I can't imagine the responsibility Reggie had to undertake with Paul and the other Pokémon once his father left for Kanto. And after all that, Paul just totally disrespects him, and their dad hardly tries to interact with them anymore… all because neither of them can defeat him in battle. It sounds like overwhelming stress to me. I don't know how Reggie pulled through that kind of thing all his life with a smile… and that sweet personality." She looked to Nurse Joy. "Why, do you… do you think all of that was just a lie? That Reggie never was that nice guy?"

"Never!" Nurse Joy insisted. "However, enduring immeasurable amounts of stress and holding it all in can be… very unhealthy, both for the body and mind. Everyone has a breaking point. And if this kind of personality is in his genes combined with a hard family life, then… we could be looking at something far more serious than an innocent young man who just seriously needs to vent."

"Wh-what… are you saying, Nurse Joy?" Maylene nervously asked. Again, she feared the answer.

Nurse Joy looked to the young Gym Leader sternly. "We'll need to run more tests, but I'll give you a preliminary diagnosis now, since the evidence is pointing in this direction: Reggie… most likely has borderline personality disorder. There may or may not be a link to bipolarity or dissociative personality disorder. We may need him to be fully conscious before we know all of the details… but signs are pointing in that general direction."

"All this time…?" Maylene looked down and suddenly felt guilty, as if she should have caught onto this before even though she'd never seen Reggie act like anything other than ordinary Reggie.

Nurse Joy looked to the sedated young man with pity. "For now, all I can say is that it will be a long road to recovery for Reggie if he wants to overcome this… and he won't be able to do it alone."

* * *

**( TBC )**


	5. It's On Like Bastiodon!

**( Notes:**

**Well, much as I've written over the years, fights and battles are definitely something I have very little expertise in actually writing about. This is almost purely the Gym Battle between Paul and Byron, and hopefully I've made this one entertaining and not too questionable. It's very action-packed if you're into that sort of thing. A little set-up for the next plot goes into motion at the end of this chapter, which should buy me some time when I figure out what's going to go on in the Snowpoint area in the anime regarding Paul (and possibly Conway, if DP119's Aggron is indeed his?!). Anyway, don't hesitate in letting me know what you think about my first attempt at writing a Gym Battle! I hope all of you continue to enjoy this crazy little adventure! )**

**

* * *

**

The time had come: Paul's Gym Battle against Byron of Canalave City. He came in with full intent on winning the badge on his first try and strengthen the endurance of his Pokémon by forcing them to adapt to battles against opponents that had an advantage over them. Paul strictly believed there was nothing to gain by spoiling a Pokémon and focusing only on its strengths. After what Weavile had failed to accomplish earlier that day, Paul was particularly harsh on it. For Weavile to stay on as a member of Paul's party, Paul needed to win this Gym Battle, and Weavile had to do everything in its power to stay conscious. This was no easy task, as Weavile's defenses were well outclassed by its offensive capabilities. However, the offense would be of little use when most of Weavile's attacks would prove not to be very effective on Byron's Pokémon.

It was strangely appropriate, Paul thought, to focus on improving his Pokémon's defenses in a Steel-typed Gym. Steel was easily the greatest type in terms of defense. Paul committed to sticking with his original plan this time around; even if Byron turned out to be an annoying man, and Paul knew he would be, he certainly banked on the hope that he could never out-do Gardenia in the enthusiasm department. He kept his cool and prevented himself from making any last-minute changes to his team or his strategy. This was easier said than done, considering what all Paul had been through just to _reach_ Canalave City on this day.

The fact that he was now stuck with Conway as a travelling partner also wasn't helping matters.

"Very interesting," Conway murmured, as he had never been in this Gym before. "Pristine, metallic… fitting considering the dominant type."

"This isn't a field trip," Paul harshly reminded him. "We're going straight into battle and straight out the door after I win. You can geek yourself to death over this place on your own time. Focus on finding the battling area or Byron."

Conway looked ahead; not taking any offense to Paul's insulting, for as long as his insults didn't involve Dawn, Conway was pretty adept in enduring Paul's attitude. "It shouldn't be a stretch to find the battle arena, honestly. It's probably right at the end of this hallway behind those doors," he figured. "If we're lucky, Byron should be right there to accept your challenge."

Paul nodded, agreeing with him for once. "With any luck…" He soon looked annoyed, tugging at his coat a bit. "Does he really need to keep it so warm in here?"

"Say what?" Conway was alerted upon hearing that. "Paul, it's really not that bad in here. Maybe you should take your coat off, but like I said, you're running a fever…"

Taking off his coat did sound like a pleasant idea, but Paul focused more on Conway's obsessive diagnosis of his alleged condition. Of course, he'd been feeling feverish and slightly dizzy since he boarded the ship to Canalave City, but he wasn't about to admit it to Conway. "Will you lay off on that, already? I have a battle to focus on, and your nosing in on my business is becoming a huge distraction."

"It's only from the goodness of my heart that I keep reminding you," Conway insisted. "But don't worry. I'll make sure you'll keep your head in the game. It'll make up for me annoying you, surely." And with that, he winked, but Paul remained unimpressed and irritated.

"Just be a good, quiet cheerleader in the stands and we won't have a problem," Paul requested just as he was opening the door. "A _very_ quiet cheerleader."

The next room was indeed a large battle arena with crowd stands at both sides of the field. The battling area hosted a rough and natural ground with several jagged rocks protruding from the dirt. It greatly contrasted the flooring beyond the boundaries, which was shiny and steel just like the rest of the Gym. From a distance, Paul and Conway could see a man toting a shovel standing there at one end of the battlefield. He was stiff and silent, and looked as though he expected someone to come up and challenge him.

"How dedicated," Conway mused. "To stand there at his post all day to await challengers… must be boring as sin, but his dedication is admirable."

Paul ran towards the battlefield ahead of Conway until he reached what was apparently the challenger's designated corner. "Byron!!" Paul shouted out so that the much older man could hear him from across the field. It was hard to make out, but Byron smirked upon the calling of his name.

"I…" Paul took a deep breath before finishing; running even a short distance had already worn him out… and that was unusual for him. "I'm here to challenge you!"

To that, Byron howled with laughter long enough for Conway to catch up with Paul.

"You don't say?" Byron mused, after controlling his laughter. "And who might you be, kid?"

That harsh tone and condescending vocabulary felt very familiar for Paul. Indeed, this was the kind of talk he'd heard from his own father in the past. He frowned at Byron's chiding, but remained firm. "Paul of Veilstone City," he said quickly. "Do you accept or not? I've had a very long day."

The name seemed to take Byron off-guard for a moment. He blinked, rubbed his eyes, and scrutinized his opponent. "Paul of Veilstone City…" he muttered. Then, he grinned. "Almost thought I'd never see the day! You've grown like a weed, kid!"

"What…?" Paul's eyes widened, since this was different. Naturally, most Sinnoh residents were somewhat familiar with Brandon's children, but he never came across someone who talked as if he really knew him.

Conway took an interest to the statement as well. "You know him, Paul? Goodness, why didn't you bring it up before?"

Paul shook his head. "I don't remember actually meeting Byron in person before… unless…"

"HAH!" Byron guffawed, still looking cocky. "Figures you wouldn't remember me, kiddo! You were ye tall," He demonstrated by lowering his hand down to his knees. "Last time I saw you! Can't blame you for that!"

It was becoming obvious where this conversation would lead to. Paul didn't feel like going there, but felt like he had to if he was ever going to get this battle underway. "You're… a friend of my old man, aren't you?"

"Ah, yeah! Good guess!" Byron affirmed. "Brandon and I go way back. He was pleased as punch to introduce me to you when you were a wee one. You clung to your mommy a lot, I remember, but I could tell you had that fighting spirit, and you'd grow up to be a big tough guy like your dad! Couldn't see that as much in little Reggie, much as he put up a good fight against me all those years ago…" He then realized how many years it had been, and laughed. "Guess I was right there, too! Your brother gave up the battling life, didn't he?"

Paul felt awkward hearing such specific details of his younger days. He hardly remembered his mother at all and wasn't even sure how long he actually mourned her loss, if he even did. He was far too young back then, and the details were far too blurred in his head to make any sense of them. But visualizing himself as a young child in his mother's arms was disturbing.

"Yes," Paul answered, but felt very uneasy now. He blamed the awkward memories for it, but it was more likely his pounding headache, his sweating, and his stomach bothering him that brought on his worse-for-wear condition. "He's… a breeder now. But I'm not going to be like him… _or_ the old man. I'm aiming for genuine success."

Byron seemed to like his attitude. "For being the most powerful Frontier Brain in all of Kanto, I wouldn't say Brandon failed, necessarily! I know firsthand how tough the guy is. Heh, we got into fights all the time as kids… guy was as determined to find fossils and ancient artifacts as I was! And now he's gotten up-close and personal with actual legendary Pokémon… it's easy to be jealous of the guy!"

Conway absorbed every detail of this conversation as best he could; it wasn't every day one would hear such juicy details on famed figures in Sinnoh. "Indeed, Brandon can't even be challenged without defeating the other Frontier Brains, and you need good qualifications to even attempt to conquer the Battle Frontier," he noted. "Guess that is a bit more of a prestigious role than a Gym Leader… no offense, of course."

Byron frowned and turned his attention towards Paul's bespectacled companion. "And what do they call you, Four-Eyes?"

Paul nodded contentedly as he noticed Conway quickly becoming intimidated by being focused on. It was enough to make him smile a little.

"Oh! Uh…" Conway paused for a moment, trying to find the right thing to say. "My name's Conway! I'm a friend and traveling companion of Paul's."

Paul's smile faded. "More like an obsessive leech who has nothing better to do with his time than stalk me. Believe me; I tried to get rid of him."

Conway wasn't about to let himself look bad in front of the Gym Leader. "I saved his life earlier today! I'm sticking around until he repays the debt."

"I see," Byron said, nodding. "You sure don't look like much, but we can't judge books by their covers, huh?! You here for a Gym Battle too, little man?"

"N-not at all!" Conway cried out, waving his hands frantically. "I came here because I wanted to witness one for myself! Ah, I'm kind of like a Pokémon Freelancer, you see…"

"A Jack of all Trades!" Byron sputtered, laughing out loud again. Paul wasn't sure whether he should have been content that other people were seeing Conway for what he truly was or if he should be disturbed that such a gruff old man would be thinking in a mindset similar to his own. "Oh, I don't envy you in the least. Best I can do for you is to let you see the thrill of the battle, then!" Byron announced.

He then turned to Paul. "Just so we're clear, I don't personally take on challengers until they've beaten my son in Oreburgh City. He's hardly an obstacle, but if you can't beat him, you've got no chance in beating me, kiddo!"

Paul sighed, digging into his back and pulling out his badge case. He opened it up to take out the Coal Badge and show it before Byron. "I defeated Roark ages ago. Here's the proof if you need it."

Byron squinted to make sure, but the shape and gleam of the badge was telling enough that Paul's words were genuine. "Looks like you're not kidding. That boy of mine's got a lot to learn yet… but I guess I can't be too hard on him, considering you're Brandon's kid! But regardless of that, I'm very much different from Roark." He grinned, looking directly into Paul's eyes. "So in place of my son, I accept your challenge, Paul!"

"Finally," Paul muttered. The reminiscing was becoming too much for him, especially since he didn't remember Byron at all. He almost wondered if that combined with the fact that he was a close friend of Brandon's put him at an even greater disadvantage… but calmed down when he remembered that Reggie was able to defeat Byron a long time ago. If his considerably weaker brother could pull off a win from Byron, Paul was certain he could very well do the same. "Just… a second."

The heat was becoming unbearable for Paul at this point. He laid his bag to the ground in order to unzip his jacket and wrap it around his waist, leaving him in his rarely-seen dark blue t-shirt. It was a relief to finally have that coat off of him, but he was beginning to worry about what was happening to him within. Conway and Byron didn't seem to be overheated in the least. Even without the coat, Paul still found himself sweating, and though he couldn't see it for himself, his face was completely flushed.

"Hot under the collar, huh?" Byron assumed, chuckling. "Guess that's reasonable considering the reputation that precedes you due to your family. Don't think for a second I'll go easy on you just because you're my friend's son, kid!"

"I never expected you to," Paul retorted, trying his best to stay firm and stable. "You'd be a miserable excuse for a Gym Leader if you did."

This was met with enthusiastic laughter on Byron's end. "Your words couldn't be any truer! Spoken like a true son of Brandon!"

While Paul quietly stewed in anger over those words, Byron looked to a dejected Conway making his way to the seats. After a brief moment of consideration, he grinned and called out to the young trainer. "Hey, Four-Eyes! I got a proposition for you!"

Conway jumped a bit, not expecting to be addressed to again, but looked to Byron with an uneasy smile. "A… a proposition, you say?"

"Yeah, get down here!" Byron shouted, gesturing him to come down to the field. "How'd you like to be our referee, huh?"

The idea of refereeing an official match of Paul's elated Conway. He could hardly breathe, nor believe he was truly being offered this. "Y-you really just said…?"

"C'mon!" Byron urged. "We can't start without you!"

It was real. Conway really was being offered to referee. It was a relatively simple job, and Conway had read up on Pokémon battling enough to know the basics. Knowing there was no time to waste, Conway jumped from the seats straight to the battlefield rather than walking back the way he came from. He quickly took his place in the referee's corner between Paul and Byron.

"Alright!" Conway shouted, posing dramatically. "Then let the Canalave Gym Battle commence! To my left, hailing from Veilstone City is our challenger, Paul!"

Paul just gaped at the sight. He couldn't believe Byron was actually letting Conway referee this battle. But he realized, perhaps, this was a tactic to throw him off. He looked back to Byron and glared, drawing his first Pokéball out, ready to throw at any time.

"And to my right is none other than the Leader of the Canalave Gym, Byron!"

Byron smiled to Conway as he took out his first Pokéball. "Good job, Four-Eyes. You've got some flair in the announcing department."

"Why, thank you!" Conway humbly announced, still in his "official referee" tone of voice. "So, this will be a three-on-three match-up, meaning both the challenger and the Gym Leader will use approximately three Pokémon each! The match is over when one side's Pokémon are all defeated! Additionally, only the challenger may substitute during the battle!"

Paul shook his head, looking oddly confident now. "Well, that shouldn't be necessary for me. We're going to make this a quick one."

"You must have some game plan to be saying something like _that_ to me!" Byron pointed out. "Overconfidence was a flaw of your dad's too, you know!"

"He may be overconfident, but it's different in my case," Paul explained. "I never talk big without having the skill and certainty to back it up."

Byron smirked and pressed the button on his Pokéball, enlarging it. "Put your skills to the test, then! Show him your iron will, Bronzor!" The Gym Leader threw the Pokéball out to the field, and from it came out his first choice for battle, the Bronze Pokémon.

"Bronnn," Bronzor hummed, prepared for another battle to test the challenger's abilities.

Seeing this made Paul grin. This was much less than he expected, but knew good Gym Leaders wouldn't put their strongest player out front. What he was happiest about was that he knew enough about Bronzor – a Steel _and_ Psychic-type Pokémon – to figure this would be an easy victory for his first Pokémon. He pressed the button on his Pokéball and sent it out.

"Honchkrow, stand by for battle!"

Finally being called out for battle, Honchkrow flew out of its ball and awaited orders from its trainer. On its own, it could see this was indeed a battle it was called out for.

"Interesting trade-off," Byron remarked. "I can't wait to see this."

"I can't wait myself," Conway concurred, wondering how this match would play out with advantages and disadvantages on both sides. "So our first match will be Honchkrow versus Bronzor!" With another dramatic pose, he allowed the match to commence. "Battle begin…!"

Paul was quick to take the initiative. "Honchkrow, rush Bronzor with Sky Attack!"

Immediately, Honchkrow dove in towards Bronzor in a blinding speed. It became enveloped in light as it was about to hit its target.

Byron expected Paul to be more straightforward and fire off a Dark-type attack, but the time it took Sky Attack to charge up gave him an excellent idea. He waited until Honchkrow crossed over to his side of the field before giving Bronzor the first command.

"Stay strong, Bronzor!" Byron encouraged it. "Counter with Gyro Ball!"

Bronzor began to spin itself around rapidly to charge up the energy needed to combat the first strike against it. Luckily for Byron, Gyro Ball fully charged much more quickly than Sky Attack, leading to an immense clash when Honchkrow and Bronzor met face-to-face. Paul immediately looked worried when Bronzor, almost effortlessly, blew Honchkrow all the way back to its side of the field, having overpowered it. Steel wasn't super-effective against either of Honchkrow's types, but it certainly looked like it had a lasting effect, shown by Honchkrow's struggling to remain in the air.

Conway was amazed by the power the small Bronzor possessed, and was enthralled by the clashes of light he just witnessed. "That's quite a strategy," he remarked, though mostly he was talking to himself. "Gyro Ball's power increases if the user is significantly slower than its opponent. The wider the gap, the greater the increase of power. It's no surprise that it could overpower Honchkrow with those aspects in play."

Byron laughed and wagged his finger at Paul. "You called it certainty, right? Sure looked like plain old overconfidence to me, kid!"

"This match is far from over," Paul retorted, though he was hesitant about sending Honchkrow in so close against Bronzor again. He decided it was time to battle more strategically. "Honchkrow, stay right where you are and use Shadow Ball."

"Honch!" Honchkrow acknowledged as it charged a ball of dark energy in front of its beak. Byron realized Paul planned to attack from a distance this time and looked sharply to his Pokémon. "Bronzor, hurry over there! Use Confuse Ray!"

"Zor!" It called out before following Byron's orders. Swiftly floating over to Paul's side of the field, Bronzor charged in and attacked Honchkrow with a ray shining white and purple with full intent of confusing it before it could fire off the Shadow Ball. The ray struck Honchkrow and seemed to be effective, but it couldn't dissipate the fully-charged Shadow Ball that went flying right into Bronzor as soon as Honchkrow was broken away from its attack.

Bronzor was hit directly and sent into one of the many large rocks scattered across the field. It was not knocked out yet, but clearly damaged by this point. Honchkrow, fully confused, could no longer keep flying and landed on the ground, trying to shake off its unfortunate status before Bronzor had another chance to attack.

Paul assessed the situation thoroughly. Strategically, since he was allowed to, he would be wise to recall Honchkrow and use a fresh Pokémon to quickly finish off Bronzor. However, Paul wanted to focus on endurance for this Gym Battle. He wanted his Pokémon to withstand whatever Byron could throw at them with steeled determination. Paul knew he was going to need that kind of thing when it was time to face the League, as well as the new Battle Frontier… not to mention his own father.

Unsure of the results, Paul made another command to attack: "Now! Use Dark Pulse before it recovers!"

Luck was on Paul's side this turn, as Honchkrow successfully shot a dark aura beam towards Bronzor, which was still recovering from the previous clash. Bronzor remained pinned against the rock, but was still conscious and able to battle.

Paul growled at this. "Come on, already! It's over!" It was apparent that the small Pokémon's great endurance was aggravating him.

Conway just shook his head at this. "Paul's acting rashly now… not a good state to be in before the first match even ends. Impatient, sick, Pokémon with disadvantages… I've got a bad feeling about this."

"Hah! Wanting a quick match with _me_, the master of steel?!" Byron shouted out with a laugh. "My team is built with defense being the number one priority! Try as you might, but you'll never take my Pokémon down in one shot! You were foolish to think you could end this quickly…" Then he grinned. "Just like Brandon! Pure overconfidence! So Bronzor, tackle Honchkrow while it's still vulnerable!"

"Not a chance!" Paul shouted back. Being compared to Brandon only fueled his never-ending anger. "Honchkrow, stay focused and use Aerial Ace! You can't miss!"

Honchkrow's confusion was still present, however, as it attempted to fly high into the sky to initiate the attack, only to fly itself directly into a rock instead. Seizing the opportunity, Bronzor flew towards Honchkrow and rammed into it, hard. Paul was shocked, and Byron simply laughed again.

"It can miss if it's still confused, which it obviously is!" Byron pointed out, now overwhelmed with pride. "End it now, Bronzor! Gyro Ball, once more!"

Paul had no idea when Honchkrow was going to recover from the confusion, but he had a feeling Honchkrow would be well incapacitated if it took another hit. In order to win, he needed to use his speed and accuracy to come out on top.

"Counter it!" He shouted to Honchkrow. "Shadow Ball!"

It was the climax of the first battle as Honchkrow's Shadow Ball clashed against Bronzor's Gyro Ball. However, Shadow Ball managed to overpower Bronzor's attack and ultimately sent both attacks flying at Bronzor, which was then pummeled into the ground. When the lights faded and the smoke cleared, the results were clear: a very exhausted Honchkrow remained standing, but Bronzor was completely incapacitated.

After gaping for a moment, Conway remembered he was refereeing and did his duty. "Bronzor is unable to battle!" he announced before dramatically pointing to Paul. "Victory goes to Honchkrow!"

Byron was now impressed. "It seems I underestimated you," he admitted. "Shadow Ball can weaken the target's defenses. Bronzor was weakened after taking that first Shadow Ball… that must be why it took so long for it to recover, and why its Gyro Ball could not overpower your second Shadow Ball onslaught." He thrust his shovel deep into the ground. "Bravo! That was an excellent strategy!"

Paul wiped the sweat off his forehead, now staggering. The intensity of that fight exhausted him, and he had to go through at least two more. He simply nodded to Byron without saying anything. The dizziness was close to overpowering him, but he shook it off and stood firmly once more.

Conway was concerned; Paul was quickly succumbing to his illness but continued to deny it and press on, stressing himself out and putting himself in an even worse physical condition. He knew what the answer was going to be, but for the sake of his own conscience, he looked to Paul and asked him, "Are you sure you want to keep going on with this?"

"I'm not giving in," Paul growled. "Ever. I'm going to win this badge _today_."

That was more-or-less the response Conway expected. He looked down and nodded. "Well, do your best, then…"

"I already am," Paul insisted. "Honchkrow, stay the course."

That decision surprised both Conway and Byron. But the surprise on Byron's face quickly dissipated as he grabbed Bronzor's Pokéball, aimed it at said Pokémon, and recalled it. He looked down at the Pokéball with a proud smile. "Admirable effort, Bronzor. You earned yourself a rest," Byron said, putting his Pokéball away and taking out another one.

"Since you're staying with Honchkrow, your next opponent will be…" Byron announced, dramatically posing before unleashing what he possessed in his next Pokéball. "Steelix!"

Conway couldn't help but shrink back a bit when the thirty-foot Iron Snake Pokémon entered the battlefield. Despite its intimidating look, Paul shrugged it off.

"Big deal," he said. "I fought one of those before in Johto. I know what to expect."

"You battled with little Jasmine before, huh?" Byron figured. "Well, we'll see how well you can predict _my_ Steelix's moves!"

Paul nodded, fighting off the nagging pain and exhaustion wearing him down as he commanded Honchkrow to stay strong, despite being severely injured at this point. "Shake it off, Honchkrow," he urged. "Sky Attack!"

Byron just shook his head. "No chance. Steelix, use Ice Fang!"

"Ice Fang?!" Paul echoed, now surprised. "Jasmine's Steelix definitely didn't know that…"

There was nothing Paul could do. Honchkrow was trapped within Steelix's grip as it was slammed by a super-effective Ice Fang attack; its Sky Attack was unable to finish or affect Steelix in any way. The hit was more than enough to knock Honchkrow unconscious, which was made obvious when the Big Boss Pokémon careened into the ground lifelessly.

"That was quick…" Conway murmured, before realizing he had to announce again. "Ah, Honchkrow is unable to battle!" He pointed to Byron. "Victory goes to Steelix!"

Byron nodded in agreement. "A foregone conclusion, if I do say so myself."

Paul silently recalled Honchkrow back to its Pokéball and pulled out his next one. "So we're at two apiece. Make sure _you_ don't get too cocky." Paul threw out the Pokéball to unleash his next fighter. "Ursaring, stand by for battle!"

The tall Hibernator Pokémon appeared on the spot, growling a fierce "Ursaaaah!" to show its readiness for the battle. It looked up and glared at Steelix, not at all intimidated by its much larger size.

"A Normal-type," Byron mused. "You must have quite a few surprises in store for me."

"You could say that," Paul replied before looking to Ursaring. "Put all of your strength into this one, Ursaring. Use Hammer Arm!"

Ursaring growled out loud as it rushed towards Steelix with its forearms glowing brightly. Byron and Steelix braced for this attack as Ursaring slammed its arms down on the lower portion of Steelix's body. The force of the blow sent shockwaves through the ground, and everyone on the playing field could feel the brutality of that single blow.

Steelix roared out loud in pain, as the super-effective attack effectively dented it, but withstood it and was still in the game.

"Excellent work, Steelix! That may have been painful, but you persevered!" Byron said, truly meaning to compliment his Pokémon.

Conway rested his chin in his hand as he analyzed the battle schematics. "Steelix's defenses are more than twice as firm as Bronzor's… but Ursaring has the raw power to compensate for this. It helps that he's slightly faster, too… the side-effect of a powerful attack like Hammer Arm will put a dent in Ursaring's below-average speed, but it should still be quick enough to dodge, if Paul is in his right mindset…" He briefly looked over to Paul, who looked as strained and sickly as ever. Conway frowned and shook his head. "Who am I kidding?" He said to himself. "He's officially lost his marbles."

"Show Ursaring what for, Steelix! Use Iron Tail!" Byron cried out, thrusting his fist forward.

Steelix followed through with the command and attempted to smash Ursaring with its giant, heavy tail. The accuracy was precise, but what Byron didn't expect was Ursaring catching the tail in its own grasp and preventing Steelix from doing any damage. Ursaring struggled under the weight, but was able to shove the tail out of its way.

"Have another surprise," Paul offered the Gym Leader. "Ursaring! Secret Power!"

Being a Normal-type attack, the power of the attack and the rocks that flew at Steelix did not affect it much. However, it suddenly felt anxious as it flinched; Secret Power's hidden effect on the rocky terrain.

"Ah! You tricky little…!" Byron muttered under his breath as he witnessed his Pokémon falling victim to the secondary effect. "This is no time to be anxious, Steelix!" He called out. "_You're_ the big guy on the field! You own this terrain! Remember that!"

Byron's words were somewhat getting through to Steelix, though it wasn't enough to break the condition it was rendered in. Steelix flinched again when it saw Ursaring charging up another attack.

"We have Steelix right where we want it," Paul announced, sounding a bit more optimistic that his plan was working well so far. "Take your time charging that Focus Blast, Ursaring. It won't be able to take another major hit like that."

Byron shook his head in disappointment. "Overconfidence will get that kid nowhere. Steelix, snap out of it already! You can't let that Focus Blast hit you!" And Byron knew that one disadvantage to having a thirty-foot Pokémon was that it was essentially a _huge_ target that was nigh impossible for any attack to miss. Steelix's poor speed usually meant a guaranteed hit. So instead of trying to dodge the attack, Byron went a different route:

"Steelix! Pull yourself together and use Sandstorm!"

The route of distracting Ursaring to the point where the attack never occurs.

The entire field suddenly picked up the weather condition of a sandstorm, where hot blasts of wind blew dust, sand, and bits of rock everywhere. Even Conway and Paul couldn't evade it. Conway was at least fortunate enough to have eye protection, but the last thing Paul needed was added heat and bits of rock and sand battering him and his Pokémon for the rest of the battle. His vision was blurred and distorted through his sickness alone; the sandstorm made things much harder to see and it took a physical toll on everyone involved… except Steelix, who seemed practically immune to it, and Byron, who was tough enough to endure the elements.

Ursaring was quickly distracted when rocks started pelting the back of its head, not to mention the dust and sand easily able to get in its eyes and obscure its vision, as well as causing extreme pain. Its charged energy dispersed as Ursaring tried to rub its eyes in frustration.

"Perfect timing!" Byron announced. "This is your chance, Steelix! Use Bind!"

Steelix proudly did as it was told, and captured Ursaring with its brutal tail. It squeezed Ursaring hard, making the situation all the worse for Paul's second Pokémon.

Meanwhile, Conway was coughing, trying to keep the dust and sand out of his face. "Are you sure this is safe?!" He called out in fear.

"Don't get yourself all torn up!" Byron shouted back. "It's only temporary! Now, Steelix! Make sure you've got a good grip on Ursaring! We're ending this very soon!"

Paul grumbled as he tried to think of a plan to get Ursaring out of danger. Being in such close proximity to Steelix, being squashed by its tail, and suffering the effects of Sandstorm was taking an enormous toll on it. Within two moves, Paul was suddenly dealing with a myriad of issues. "Ursaring!" he cried out. "J-just… try to break out of it! If you can toss away his tail, breaking out of the Bind should be easy!"

Normally it would be, but dealing with the effects of Sandstorm at the same time as Bind was very taxing on Ursaring's stamina. It attempted to break free from the hold, but could not do so quickly. Meanwhile, Steelix was preparing for its next move as it leisurely countered Ursaring's attempts to break free by squeezing harder.

"The coup de grace!" Byron announced. "Steelix, use Ice Fang!"

Still constricted within Steelix's tail, Ursaring had no way to avoid the harsh chill of Ice Fang. One moment later, the Sandstorm started to recede. Everyone was able to see clearly again… and what they saw was Ursaring frozen in a block of ice.

"Hah! It actually froze Ursaring!" Byron cried out in disbelief. "Excellent work, Steelix!"

Conway stared in horror at the scene. "I-it's true… Ice Fang has a small chance of freezing its opponent if the attack is successful… Ursaring had no way to even move, so it got the brunt of the attack…" He looked to Paul, who was also staring in abject horror. Conway sighed and shook his head. "Looks like this one's over."

"Ursaring!!" Paul shouted in desperation. "Get out of there! Break out, already!"

"Save your breath," Byron insisted with a smirk. "Steelix, put that Ursaring out of its misery with Iron Tail!"

A brutal slam was heard, followed by the dramatic breaking of the ice. It was a direct hit, and Ursaring was powerless to resist it. Ursaring was sent flying back to its side of the field near Paul. Paul fell to his knees and stared at his Pokémon, who was now rendered unconscious by that final vicious blow.

It was a depressing and vicious sight to behold. Even Conway was horrified, and it was evident in the tone of his voice. "U-Ursaring is… is unable to battle… victory goes to… S-Steelix."

"Yahoooo!" Byron cheered, as if he'd won the entire challenge already. "Against the odds, Steelix! Against the odds! You're amazing!"

Steelix seemed appreciative of the comment. Paul was still on his knees, staring down at his fallen Ursaring. He had just been in control of the entire match mere moments ago, and now he was left with only one usable Pokémon while Byron still had two and going strong. Paul remembered what he had said earlier at the Pokémon Center.

"What's wrong, kiddo?" Byron called out to Paul. "You forfeiting the match already?"

Paul shook his head, but still could not look at the man he challenged. He no longer had room for error for the rest of the battle; he had to play this out perfectly, or he'd be walking out of the Gym with no Mine Badge to show for it. In hindsight, he wished he could go back in time and prevent Magmar from being sent to Reggie. He very much doubted Weavile would be able to pull off a win from a relatively healthy Steelix and whatever else Byron had up his sleeve.

Finally, he took out Ursaring's Pokéball and silently recalled it as he did with Honchkrow. After a mighty struggle, Paul managed to stand up again and take out his final Pokéball. He grasped it tightly, knowing the odds were well against him now, but knew he couldn't spend all day deliberating over that. Paul felt extremely sick now; his entire shirt was damp from perspiration, he was now dirty from being within the Sandstorm, his cheeks were burning red (and overall, the Gym was feeling like a desert to Paul by this point), his stomach was doing flip-flops, and he could barely see straight.

Byron and Conway patiently waited for Paul to collect himself. Conway wondered just how much more Paul could take, because he easily looked as if he could pass out already. Again, he felt he should ask Paul if he still wanted to go on, but already figured that it would be impossible to drag Paul out of the battle now after being this deep into it.

Paul closed his eyes and gathered his thoughts. He then looked to his company with an intense glare that Byron himself remembered seeing on Brandon when he was this age. It was his "business" look. He looked to Steelix and muttered, "Better stay on your guard. He'll be trying his best to even out the score."

After a deep breath, Paul pressed the button on his Pokéball and threw it out on the field as hard as he could. "Weavile, stand by for battle…!"

Upon seeing this Dark/Ice-typed Pokémon, Byron smirked. Conway knew this was coming, and he certainly did not envy Weavile right now.

"Well, it seems our challenger can't seem to take the heat, Steelix!" Byron said, completely unaware that Paul was actually sick. "How about you do him a favor and take Weavile out quickly? Do it with Iron Trail!"

Steelix was quick to act on this order and swung its giant metal tail at the Sharp Claw Pokémon.

But this time, Paul refused to allow his physical limitations to hold him back. "Dodge it!!" He ordered, and Weavile did so with ease. The strategy to getting around a giant Pokémon that was a threat to its typing was to abuse the gift of speed it had. Compared to Weavile, Steelix was slower than a snail, and being significantly smaller than Steelix made Weavile an even harder target to hit.

Even without Paul's commands, Weavile was constantly dodging on its own, perhaps assuming that was part of the general routine it would have to go through if it wanted to defeat Steelix. And it _had_ to defeat Steelix: its fate depended on the outcome of this battle. It awaited Paul's commands when it came to the offensive maneuvers, however.

"Climb up Steelix, Weavile!" Paul called out. "When you reach its head, jump up and wait for my signal!"

Weavile briefly looked to Paul and nodded before rapidly dodging through hopping and using its claws to quickly escalate the giant enemy Pokémon with the intent of hitting its weak point for massive damage… whatever it could do to dent Steelix. Steelix was not 100% due to Ursaring giving it a nasty sting in the lower section of its body early in the previous fight, but its condition remained fairly decent.

However, the faster Weavile climbed and dodged, the trickier it became to actually hit Weavile with a giant glowing tail. It was quickly getting too risky for Byron's liking; he didn't want to end up knocking out his own Pokémon just by trying to swat a metaphorical gnat.

Conway watched this interesting battle with amusement, and even with a bit of hope. "Whatever he said to Weavile must have worked… Weavile looks fantastic right now. Maybe it can actually pull this off. The small size and speed being utilized to Steelix's disadvantage… that's simply _genius_."

Byron grumbled, not really having an attack that _wouldn't_ risk Steelix's wellbeing as long as Weavile was attached to it. "Don't let Weavile just stick to you, Steelix!" he ordered. "Shake it off and smash it so we can win this thing!"

Steelix attempted to do so, but Weavile's sharp claws and unmatchable speed made it nigh impossible to detach Weavile from its body. And soon enough, Weavile reached the top of Steelix's head. It jumped up high into the air, waiting for Paul's signal.

Paul carefully monitored Weavile's altitude until it was high up enough to his liking. He threw his arms down to signal Weavile to attack just then. "Now!! Use Brick Break on Steelix's head!"

Weavile didn't even waste a second after receiving the command. It zoomed downwards back to Steelix with its claws glowing menacingly. Byron looked concerned and shouted out to his Pokémon at the last second. "Steelix! Dodge it!!"

However, Steelix was simply too slow. Weavile's claws pounded hard into Steelix's head and sent it crashing down. Byron was aghast at the sight while Paul let a wicked grin escape his lips. After throwing down on Steelix, Weavile continued to beat on Steelix's head without any sort of command from Paul. Noticing this, Paul blinked at Weavile, a little confused over its actions.

Conway, however, figured it out. "It's overcompensating for what happened earlier today," he hypothesized. "Such determination… just to be able to stay with someone like Paul?"

Paul couldn't understand what exactly was going on, but he liked what Weavile was doing. "Keep at it, then! You seem to know exactly what you're doing, Weavile."

Hearing its trainer's encouragement further fueled Weavile to Brick Break on Steelix's head to the point where it was nearly paralyzed, and possibly sustaining a concussion before finally passing out.

"Enough, enough!" Byron called out. "Kid, he's done enough!"

Paul peered at Steelix and saw that it was indeed out cold. Weavile simply didn't notice because it was too focused on beating Steelix into oblivion. "Weavile!" Paul shouted out. "It's over! You defeated it! Get back over here!"

Weavile stopped, seemingly broken from a trance it was in. It hopped away from Steelix and back to Paul's corner, where it looked to Paul for appraisal. Paul didn't smile at Weavile, for the battle was not over yet, but nodded to it to let Weavile know it did a fantastic job taking down a thirty-foot beast of a Pokémon that had a major type advantage over it.

Amazed and almost filled with hope, Conway happily made the result official. "Steelix is unable to battle! Victory goes to Weavile!"

Byron solemnly returned Steelix to its Pokéball and looked to it. "It was my fault for not making a suitable strategy. Don't blame yourself." He pocketed Steelix away and pulled out his final Pokéball. The score was now tied up again, both trainers left with one Pokémon each.

"Keep up that enthusiasm," Paul advised Weavile. "This isn't Olivine Gym; Steelix was just the beginning. This is going to be Byron's trump card. Make sure you don't allow yourself to get hit."

Weavile nodded to Paul, knowing now it was Paul's only hope for winning a Mine Badge. Even with the type disadvantage and poor defenses, Weavile was determined to end the final battle as quickly as the penultimate.

"So, it's down to this," said Byron, looking down at his final Pokéball. "Just as well. Keeping it tight makes a battle more worthwhile and interesting! Represent yourself, me, and this Gym well, my friend!" He looked to his opponent. "We'll make our stand here and now! GO!!" He threw the Pokéball out to the battlefield. "Bastiodon!"

Out came the Shield Pokémon to the battleground; thankfully, this one was hardly thirty feet tall. At a modest four feet and three inches, the ancient reptilian Bastiodon stood firm as Byron's signature Pokémon.

"Hey, neat!" Conway exclaimed, nudging his glasses to get a more accurate look. "Bastiodon. I've never seen one up close before!"

Paul sighed, trying to find a weak spot on his final opponent. "Facing it head-on won't do any good, it looks like. All that armor..." He then stared down at Weavile. "Only attack when I tell you to for this battle. What you did to Steelix was a nice touch, but doing the same thing to Bastiodon will only lead to disaster."

Weavile looked up at Paul and nodded nervously. "Wea, wea!"

Paul pointed out at Bastiodon. "Good. Then get out there and follow my lead!"

Weavile jumped further out into the field, seemingly ready to brace whatever attack Bastiodon had in store for it.

"Kid, you're a fine opponent, but I'm afraid the game ends here!" Byron shouted out, still loaded with confidence. "Bastiodon, rush at Weavile while using Flamethrower!"

Bastiodon did as it was told, running towards its intended target at a rather undesirable speed, but making up for it by firing off a lengthy Flamethrower attack towards its opponent that was much quicker.

"Jump!" Paul shouted out. "Dodge it!"

Weavile did so with relative ease, and quickly had the advantage of being over Bastiodon for a potential attack.

However, Paul had other ideas. "Now, use Ice Beam! Cover the field!"

The decision confused Byron and Conway a bit until they noticed what exactly Weavile was doing: by using Ice Beam to cover the battlefield in a sheet of ice, it was a matter of time before Bastiodon had traction issues and crashed itself into a rock. Weavile landed with ease, accustomed to the cold and graceful enough to stay on the ice without any problem.

"Well, that's _one_ way to 'level out' the playing field," Conway remarked, smirking. "Most trainers in Paul's physical condition would've cracked by now. Here he is still using strategy rather than haphazardly attacking to get it over with. Maybe I underestimated him… similar to how I did back in Hearthome City."

"On your feet, Bastiodon!" Byron ordered. "You can't accomplish a thing lying down like that!" His Pokémon tried to obey, but it was easier said than done for the awkward and heavy (not to mention tetrapod) Bastiodon.

Weavile was right behind Bastiodon. It smiled and looked to Paul for the next command.

Paul nodded back to his Pokémon. "With your best shot, now, since Bastiodon's distracted! Hit it with Brick Break!"

Using a similar strategy to the one against Steelix (though not on the head this time), Weavile's claws shined with bright intensity while landing the attack hard against Bastiodon – specifically, the areas of said Pokémon that weren't protected with its natural armor. Weavile spread its arms to attack both unexposed sides of Bastiodon's torso with the attack, leaving the Shield Pokémon howling in pain as it fell flat onto its stomach on the cold ice floor.

"Marvelous!" Conway exclaimed. The lenses of his glasses shined as he looked closely at the results. "Bastiodon is half-Rock and half-Steel; both types are weak to Fighting moves! It's four times as susceptible to the type compared to a Pokémon with no strength or weakness to the type! If Paul can keep this up, Bastiodon will be history very shortly even if it has top-notch defenses!"

Byron grimly nodded at the sight, well aware of his Pokémon's double-weakness from the beginning and figured Paul would have Brick Break as the central part to Weavile's strategy after seeing it pummel Steelix to the ground with it alone. "You can endure it, Bastiodon! Show our friend here that you won't be overcome by a simple double-weakness! Use Iron Defense!"

Bastiodon growled as its head began to subtly glow a shade of blue, showing Iron Defense in play. Paul frowned, as he was quick to see a problem in the near future because of Bastiodon's now dramatically-increased defensive power. Weavile had no way of undoing it, meaning Brick Break's effectiveness was significantly snuffed out. "Fall back, Weavile!" Paul shouted out. "He's planning something."

Weavile obeyed and skid across the ice, distancing itself from its opponent, who was now very close to being able to stand on its own. Back on all four feet, Bastiodon carefully turned around to face Weavile.

"First thing's first," Byron reminded his Pokémon. "Get rid of that pesky ice, Bastiodon!"

After a mighty roar, Bastiodon rose up on its hind legs, only to quickly descend and smash its two front legs back into the ground. The force of the stomp and the weight of Bastiodon was enough to make the entire field of ice crack and break into pieces, ridding Paul of his advantage in the field. The shockwaves sent off by the stomping was enough to knock Weavile off its feet. Paul and Conway also wobbled around, but were able to remain standing.

Byron grinned, obviously happy to have the upper-hand once again. "Let's see if our foe can match up to your defenses! Bastiodon, rush it with Iron Head!"

Bastiodon rushed at Weavile as its entire body glowed with a blinding aura. Being knocked off its feet, Weavile was unable to react as quickly as it normally would. Paul had no real way of countering the move, but he thought the least he could do was slow down his hefty opponent. "Weavile, use Ice Shard and get out of there!"

Being a priority move, Ice Shard would assuredly reach Bastiodon before it could reach Weavile with Iron Head. Weavile flung shards of ice to pelt Bastiodon, but it seemed to only barely scratch the Pokémon as it continued to rush at Weavile with full power. Seeing that it didn't help, Weavile attempted to move out of the way, but still got nailed in the side by the vicious attack. The Sharp Claw Pokémon was thrown into a rock from the force of the blow. It was still conscious, but was significantly wounded.

"And just like that, Paul's back to square one…" Conway noted, looking fearful for Weavile as well as the ultimate outcome of the final match. "Ice Beam, Brick Break, and Ice Shard… only one of those moves really affects Bastiodon, and even now that's been weakened due to Bastiodon's boosted defense." He looked to Paul, who seemed rather conflicted on what to do next. "Paul… what can he really do now?"

"Might as well lose with dignity, kid," Byron advised Paul. "Your overconfidence just got the better of you this time. Finish Weavile off with Flash Cannon, Bastiodon!"

Similar to Shadow Ball, Bastiodon didn't need to move to perform this attack. It charged the energy within its mouth and fired it off when ready. Pure Steel-typed energy flew at the faltering Weavile with a fury.

Paul knew a direct hit would end it, but he wasn't content to let it end this way. "Dodge it!" he cried out to Weavile. "Jump over it!"

It was a close call, as Weavile was still trying to recover from the side-swipe it suffered from the Iron Head attack, but managed to avoid it in the nick of time while holding its injured side with one arm. Flash Cannon instead disintegrated the rocks Weavile was previously lying against.

"I'll need to stick with aerial maneuvers to win this," Paul muttered to himself, grasping his forehead as he started to wonder if his energy would hold out before the battle even ended. "This could've been done with two fully-powered Brick Breaks… it's all going to be improvisation from here on out." He looked to Weavile, who was still airborne.

"Take advantage of your position, Weavile!" Paul advised. "Brick Break, again!"

With only one free arm, Weavile performed the attack with solely that arm, jabbing the claw into Bastiodon's right side with the super-effective attack once more. Bastiodon cried out, but was able to handle it better due to its enhanced defense. It quickly whirled around to face Weavile and stared it down.

"Flash Cannon!" Byron called out to his partner. "And this time, don't miss your target!"

Weavile was dangerously close to Bastiodon now. This was something Paul was sure Weavile couldn't handle. "Get out of there!!" he screamed, though he knew the odds were not on his side.

It was another close call, but Weavile didn't manage to escape this time. The smaller Pokémon was smacked in the back by Flash Cannon and knocked onto the hard ground as a result. Weavile did not get the brunt of the attack, but it had definitely been hit.

Conway couldn't look when this happened. When he managed to open his eyes, he was horrified to find Weavile lying on the ground, twitching. "O-oh, that's… that's _really_ not good. Flash Cannon's like Shadow Ball in that it can potentially _lower_ an opponent's defense. Weavile's pretty abysmal at defense to begin with… so if that secondary effect happened…"

Paul shook his head when he noticed Weavile was still conscious. "No more of this. No room for error…" He knew if Weavile lost this, it would be just as much his fault as it would be Weavile's, if not more. He knew he was ill, now, and considered himself foolish for going into such an important battle without being 100% himself (he still would never admit his fallacies out loud, however). Paul tried to hold back a violent coughing fit, but could no longer resist it. Conway heard this and looked over. Now he could tell Paul himself was closer to defeat than either of the Pokémon.

However, it was far too late to back out now. Conway looked back to the battle, hoping it would end soon whichever way the victory went. In a way, he held himself responsible for not standing up to Paul when he knew Paul was making a grave mistake. Conway wondered how Paul even got this far on his own if he not only treated his Pokémon harshly, but himself as well.

"It pains me to drag on a challenger's humiliation; really, it does," Byron claimed. "This was inevitable from the beginning. Admirable that you made it this far with a relatively poor choice of Pokémon, kid, but I'm going to end it here." He pointed out to Bastiodon. "Bastiodon, use Flamethrower on Weavile! It's on its last leg!"

Metaphorically, it was very true. Just as Weavile knelt up, it could feel the increasing heat coming up from behind. It was fearful to see a massive stream of fire headed its way, and any decent hit would end the battle for sure.

"D-Dodge!" Paul shouted, now completely desperate for a miracle. "Jump in the air again!"

Once more, Weavile managed to evade the attack by jumping over it. What neither Weavile nor Paul expected was for Byron to catch on.

"With limited advantages, you're left with a limited amount of strategies!" Byron pointed out. "Jumping over Bastiodon's all you can really do; I can see that! So Bastiodon! Redirect that Flamethrower to the air!"

Suspended in midair, Weavile certainly didn't expect another blast of fire. Neither did Paul. In haste, Paul commanded whatever came to his mind just then.

"Try to cancel it out!" Paul hollered, and by now his voice was scratchy and strained due to the excessive shouting and illness taking a toll on his body. "Ice Beam!"

Ordinarily, Ice was weak to Fire and wouldn't stand a chance against a Fire-based attack. However, Flamethrower in execution was identical to Ice Beam: a thin, concentrated stream of an element. The attacks possessed the same amount of power, and what no one actually counted on was Flamethrower melting Ice Beam, turning it into water, and being snuffed out due to the dramatic change in element – turning Ice into Water would make the attack strong against Fire instead of weak. Weavile had the advantage in altitude, meaning it literally rained on Bastiodon's parade.

No amount of Ice Beam was left when all was said and done, but Flamethrower was taken out completely and the melted remnants of the Ice Beam attack splashed onto Bastiodon, effectively soaking it.

Weavile landed back onto the field. It was in critical condition, but seeing Bastiodon drenched gave Paul an idea; possibly something inspired from his own ordeals in the rain earlier that day. "Bastiodon's wet!" Paul pointed out. "So let's try this! Weavile, use Blizzard!"

Conway just raised an eyebrow at that command. "_Blizzard?_ Seriously? That's not going to affect Bastiodon; it'll just…" Then he paused. "Wait, the secondary effects…" Conway then got it. "He's going to…!"

The gem on Weavile's forehead glowed. Byron was not catching on as quickly about what Paul planned to do, but whatever it was, he wanted to end it first.

"Don't let this drag out any longer, Bastiodon!" He shouted out. "Melt that Pokémon! Flamethrower again!"

A weaker Flamethrower came out from Bastiodon, but it was too late to counter. Weavile fired snowballs and powerful wind shears. The intensity of the coldness coming from the Blizzard attack prevented it from being totally nullified like Ice Beam was, and whatever was melted was thrown right back at Bastiodon by the wind shears and froze to it instantly.

Paul smiled wickedly, as he couldn't believe it was actually working. "Keep it up, Weavile! Let's see how Byron likes _his_ Pokémon being deep-chilled!"

_Now_ it was hitting Byron. He remembered how his Steelix beat Paul's Ursaring: freezing it solid and then knocking it out while it remained defenseless. Paul was aiming to return the favor here and now.

And it worked. As Blizzard dissipated, everyone was witness to the massive Bastiodon being frozen solid in a block of ice.

"Impossible!" Byron cried out. "Bastiodon, you have to-"

"It's _over_, Byron," Paul calmly interrupted. "Weavile, one more Brick Break! Send Bastiodon into oblivion."

Weavile was more than happy to comply. A fearsome rush followed by two powerful claws to break the ice and finish off Bastiodon occurred, and with a thunderous thud, the Shield Pokémon had been felled.

In all his days of battling, Byron couldn't recall the last time he was witness to such a turnabout. But he did know one thing: his old friend Brandon was also notorious for turning things around in his favor in a pinch… even during their childhood days.

Conway had to pinch himself to make sure he wasn't dreaming, and with reality confirmed, he cheered. "Bastiodon is unable to battle! Victory goes to Weavile!! That makes the challenger, Paul of Veilstone City the winner…!!"

Byron conceded with a nod, now taking a mature stance as he looked to Bastiodon. "Looks like we had that one coming, my friend. It was just a lucky circumstance." He then returned Bastiodon to its Pokéball. "You take it easy for a while, alright?" Byron said to it. "We'll get 'em next time."

Conway ran out into the field and hugged Weavile, which was unexpected for the latter. "Weavile!" he exclaimed. "You were awesome! The way you turned the tables was like nothing I've ever seen before! And best of all, that means you're safe!"

Weavile really didn't know this acquaintance of Paul's, but it did know that every word he said was the truth. It smiled with a bashful "Wea, Wea" before Conway released his hold.

"Indeed, that was an amazing display," Byron admitted, walking over towards Weavile and Conway. "At first it seemed repetitive, but it turns out that you and your friends expertly exploited the critical flaw of my team."

"You mean the speed factor, right?" Conway asked.

Byron nodded. "With great power, endurance, or speed, something must be given back in return. My Pokémon were sturdy, but all of them were slow. I could make the best of that weakness with moves like Gyro Ball, but clever trainers can even make that backfire, as we've just seen today."

"I have to admit, I was scared there for a moment," Conway sheepishly admitted. "Paul's battling style can be unorthodox at times, but it looks like he knew what he was doing all along." He looked down at Weavile, giving it an encouraging smile. "You know, Weavile, if Paul really wanted to get rid of you, you would've been the first one sent out. The likelihood of you beating Bastiodon, Steelix, _and_ Bronzor without getting knocked out is essentially slim to none. The fact that he sent you out last must have meant that he really wanted to keep you; he really did give you a second chance, and you didn't let him down."

To see it that way, Weavile felt a sense of pride and security. It had been scared stiff by its trainer's indignation earlier, but knowing there was a part of him that genuinely cared and liked Weavile enough to try his best to keep Weavile on made said Pokémon feel liberated, even if it was still reeling from the pain of battle.

Conway held back a laugh before looking to Paul's corner. "Well, come on, don't be shy! Come up and accept your-…"

He was cut off when he saw Paul no longer standing, but now collapsed to the ground. "Oh, crap!" Conway cried out. "He pushed himself too far! Paul…!" Byron too finally noticed that his challenger had fainted, and followed Conway to care for Paul. Weavile also followed, concerned for its trainer's health.

Conway reached Paul first, kneeling down to turn the unconscious Paul onto his back so he could get a feel for his temperature. He was very alarmed after feeling his forehead, which was now burning hot. Paul was flushed, having trouble breathing, and sounded congested. Simply removing his coat did nothing more but buy him some extra time to stay conscious long enough for the entire battle and no longer.

Byron couldn't believe it. "You mean to say he was sick all along?!"

"I tried to talk him out of this, I swear!" Conway panicked, looking guilty. "He kept blowing me off; he was that determined to fight you! I was hoping it was just a simple little cold, but…!"

"Looks more like a full-blown flu bug," Byron noted, shaking his head. "Just stay calm, kid. Let's get him to a bed." With that, he picked up Paul with relative ease. "Ironic, in a way. A strong battler, but a pretty weak body…"

Suddenly, someone else entered the battle arena. He rushed over to Byron, and Byron did not seem surprised in the least. It was merely one of his colleagues who worked at the Gym.

"Cedric," Byron acknowledged. "What's the hurry, friend?"

"We've just received a long-distance call, sir," Cedric reported. "It's Maylene of the Veilstone Gym. She's on hold right now, but she requested to speak to someone named Paul… and specifically said it was an emergency."

"Emergency?!" Byron said, now surprised. "Well, Paul's right here in my arms, but you can see he is clearly incapacitated right now. He's in a bit of an emergency himself."

Conway frowned. Sometimes, he hated it when his ominous premonitions turned out to be true. "Let me take the call in his place," he requested. "You can make preparations for Paul and I'll find out what Maylene wants."

"Quick thinking, Four-Eyes!" Byron complimented, in his own special way. "You really are a man of many talents. You'll leave Paul to me, then. Go ahead and take the call."

"Right," Conway agreed, nodding. "Alright, where am I going?"

Cedric took Conway by the hand. "Follow me and I'll show you. Quickly, please!"

"You don't need to tell me twice!" Conway shouted, being dragged away.

Byron looked down at the confused and worried Weavile before making a move. He found Weavile's Pokéball and nodded, looking serious. "Your friend isn't in good shape, Weavile. He shouldn't mind me returning you to your ball." With that, he recalled Weavile to its Pokéball and put it in Paul's bag. After zipping it up and tossing it over his shoulder, he jogged across the arena to find a suitable place for the ailing Paul.

* * *

"Wh-what the…?" Maylene was confused when she was met with a green-haired adolescent in glasses instead of Reggie's little brother on the video phone. "Sir, can you make your call somewhere else? This is kind of an emergency…"

Conway shook his head, looking stern. "I'm here on behalf of Paul. I'll take a message for him."

"You are?" Maylene couldn't possibly imagine someone willing to be associated with Paul. "Who are you?"

"You may call me Conway," the bearer of the namesake said with a smile. "And you must be Maylene, the Gym Leader. It's a pleasure to meet you, albeit in unfortunate circumstances."

Maylene wasn't sure why Paul just wouldn't take the call himself, but decided to run along with it. What choice did she have? "Ah, yes… yes I am. I'm calling on behalf of his brother, Reggie."

"You said it was an emergency, right?" Conway asked. "What happened?"

"Oh…" Maylene groaned, hating to think about going over the situation in detail. "Reggie was outside training near Mt. Coronet, where there were severe thunderstorms about…"

Conway recalled the weather report he and Paul watched before arriving at the Gym. "Weird… Paul said there was no way he'd be out in anything like that…"

"Well, he was wrong!" Maylene said adamantly. "Reggie was out there and he got struck by lightning! He survived and he's stabilized at the hospital right now… well, in a sense, anyway. We need Paul to return to Veilstone immediately!"

It freaked Conway out to hear that someone was actually struck by a lightning bolt… and even more, managed to _survive_. "Th-that's… really crazy. I'll try and arrange a trip back to Veilstone City, then, but we've got problems on our end, too."

"Problems?" Maylene wondered out loud. "What do you mean?"

Conway sighed. "It's not like he got struck by lightning or anything, but Paul's been suffering from a cold ever since he left Jubilife City. Despite my attempts to get him to rest, he refused and went on to battle Byron. The battle's over now… and Paul won, but… he pushed himself too hard, and he's literally knocked out himself. That's where I came in, you see," he explained.

Maylene gasped, and then pounded her face with the palm of her hand in frustration. "Oh great, just _great!_ So he's sick, too…"

Conway seemed confused. "But you said Reggie survived the lightning strike. And how does that even make him sick? He'd just be severely injured…"

"He's sick _in the head_," Maylene tiredly clarified. "We need Paul here before Reggie has a total mental breakdown. There's no way I can contact their father, so Paul really does need to be here for his brother. It may be the only way to cure Reggie. How long will it be before Paul gets better?"

"I have no idea," Conway admitted. "He just now passed out. But don't fret; I'll arrange a trip to Veilstone City and we'll both be out of here by morning. We'll go by ship as much as we can so Paul can recover on the way there. Will that suffice?"

Maylene nodded nervously. "The quicker, the better. I hope Paul recovers by the time he gets here; I don't think Reggie's going to react very well if he sees his little brother in a bad condition."

"I'm not making any promises," Conway pointed out. "But I'll do the best I can to make sure he's healthy when he visits his brother. I'll be at his side the whole time, so there's no need to worry, alright?"

"No need to worry…" Maylene murmured, before smiling a bit.

Conway smiled back. "It's something a good friend of mine likes to say, but I mean every word of it."

Contrary to the situation, Maylene found herself giggling quietly. "A good friend of _mine_ likes to say the exact same thing… thank you, Conway."

Conway humbly bowed. "It's my pleasure to service you all. I'll go ahead and make traveling arrangements straight away."

"I trust Paul's in good hands," Maylene said, a bit more at ease with having faith in Conway. "I'll see you guys soon, then?"

In a fancy action, Conway saluted to the young Gym Leader. "Indubitably, ma'am! Take care."

Maylene nodded. "You, too!"

And then, the conversation ended with both parties ending their calls simultaneously.

There were many arrangements Conway was now obligated to make. He looked up and sighed. "No need to worry, _indeed_. One of these days, I hope these good deeds enable me to see you again… because this is officially a nightmarish adventure."

* * *

**( TBC )**


	6. The Checking Order!

**( Notes:**

**I knew the days of lightning-fast updating wouldn't last... but this is still better than my abysmal standards. Not much of an exciting chapter, especially compared to the last one, but that would've been a tough act to follow. This one serves as a bridge to end the one plot arc to the next, as well as giving something Brandon serious to do which will probably complicate things! Who knows, right? I'm pretty let down that both DP118 and DP119 are totally failing to deliver any real material for me to work with. Hopefully that'll change in the near future. This is the shortest chapter since the first one, so at least that should be a relief for those of you who hate reading really long chapters. Regardless if you're one of those people or not, enjoy this latest installment and hope the next one isn't so hopelessly lame! )**

**

* * *

**

Once traveling arrangements were made, the unconscious Paul was transferred to an infirmary where he could recover more quickly. He and Conway were due to leave Canalave City by ship early the next morning, and the ship would at least take them as far as the Valor Lakefront. From there on, they would have to take a bus to make it to Veilstone City. The distance alone meant it would take a few days for Conway and Paul to reach their destination, but it was the best they could afford to do at this point, especially since Paul was quite incapacitated now and certainly couldn't make any progress today.

It was dusk when Paul finally came to. He grunted, sensitive to the fluorescent lights in the room. Though he regained his consciousness, Paul honestly felt no better than he had before he passed out. He was still hot and sweaty, his headache was borderline-unbearable, and even in a clean and sanitary room, Paul found his sinuses congested and had difficulty breathing.

He was awake, but had no energy to sit up on his own. However, Paul did notice there was a wet cloth over his forehead, as well as a bag of ice. It disappointed and embarrassed him that this wasn't a dream; he really had succumbed to an illness mainly due to his negligence of his wellbeing. Conway happened to be sitting in a chair and reading a magazine close by Paul. Paul didn't know this, but Conway had been in that position for hours.

Upon hearing Paul make a noise, however, Conway looked past the magazine pages to see that Paul had indeed woken up. "Oh, good!" Conway exclaimed, relieved that Paul had woken up. Ordinarily he wouldn't have been this worried, but seeing Paul succumb to a simple illness the way he did had the elder trainer worried. "You're awake… guess that means you're going to be alright, then."

"Alright…?" Paul asked, as he was little confused. It then hit him that his voice was sore and hollow-sounding. He was much sicker than he thought he was. "What… happened?"

"What happened?" Conway echoed in disbelief. "You're telling me that you don't remember? … Well, guess I can't be too harsh on you. Passing out the way you did probably left you really disoriented."

Being told that he passed out only further embarrassed Paul. Nonetheless, he looked as stiff and annoyed as he usually did. "So I'm sick after all. You must be ecstatic that you turned out to be right this time."

"Huh?" Conway shook his head. "I'm not a jerk like you, Paul; I wouldn't be _happy_ about you being sick whether it proved me right or not. I didn't want it to come to this in the first place. Why else would I have been trying to talk you out of that Gym Battle constantly?"

"The Gym Battle…!" It just struck Paul that he had been battling with Byron for a Mine Badge at the time he lost consciousness. Slowly, the details of his memories before passing out crept into his mind. "That's… that's when I passed out."

Conway nodded, setting his magazine aside. "You passed out in the Gym, yes. Scared the living daylights out of all of us, too."

Paul gritted his teeth, having a feeling there was only more bad news to come, and he certainly wasn't in the mood to hear it. But for his own peace of mind, he had to confirm it… "I passed out during the final match. So I… automatically forfeited the battle."

"Guess again," Conway retorted, bringing out Paul's badge case and opening it up for him to see the contents. With the other Sinnoh Badges Paul had earned, Paul's eyes widened when he saw none other than the Mine Badge in the case with the others.

At a loss for words, Paul could only stare and stutter, thinking he was hallucinating all of this.

Conway couldn't deny it; seeing Paul react this way was highly amusing, but he knew this was hardly the time to mess with his head. "No, Paul, you aren't imagining things. You managed to defeat Byron just before you passed out… and you have Weavile to thank for this Mine Badge."

"Weavile…" It was all coming back to Paul now: how everything went wrong that morning, how he blamed Weavile for most of it, and how he threatened to release Weavile if it failed to deliver in its scheduled Gym Battle. He remembered how the battle had played out, now… and he remembered that he sent Weavile out last. From that, he knew Conway was telling the truth. But again, he didn't want to give Conway the satisfaction of seeing him humbled.

Paul grunted and looked away. "It looks like Weavile made up for its previous blunders today, then. We're even, and Weavile knows that. It doesn't need thanks from me _or_ you."

"Too late," Conway pointed out tauntingly. "I thanked Weavile enough for both of us. Face it, Paul: if you wanted Weavile gone, you would've sent it out first rather than last."

Aggravated to no end, Paul snatched his badge case from Conway and slammed it shut. "I don't need to explain my methods to you. What matters is that I've obtained my Mine Badge now, so it's time for me to head to Snowpoint City and for you to make tracks in some other direction. I've tolerated you about as much as I can stand to at this point. Are we understood?"

Conway sighed, just then looking a bit more serious, which Paul did not expect. "Paul, the journey to Snowpoint City is going to have to wait for the time being. There's a family emergency you're required to tend to at the moment, so we're leaving for Veilstone City tomorrow morning."

Much as he tried to disregard his relatives, the term "family emergency" immediately took effect on Paul. He glared at Conway and grabbed his wrist.

"What are you talking about?!" He shouted at Conway. "What happened?!"

Physical violence was something Conway liked to avoid. "Easy, easy!" He urged, gently removing Paul's warm hand from his wrist. "The Gym got a call in from Maylene, Veilstone's Gym Leader, shortly after your battle ended. She specifically requested to speak with you, but you were out cold at the time, so I took the call for you. She was calling on your brother's behalf, Paul."

It disgusted Paul to realize that Reggie was serious about letting someone like Maylene look after his place while he was out training. At the same time, he was impressed that Reggie had remained true to his word and took his training seriously for his upcoming battle with Brandon. Still, the "family emergency" element of the call came back to mind, and Paul didn't want to waste time in learning the specifics of such a call.

"Why Maylene?" He asked. "Why couldn't Reggie call me himself?"

Conway closed his eyes and looked down, solemn and calm as he broke the news to Paul. "Remember when you said there was no way Reggie would be careless enough to train outside when there was severe weather about? Apparently you were way off on that, because Reggie was found near Mt. Coronet where the worst part of the storm system was. According to Maylene… Reggie was struck by lightning."

This sufficiently stunned Paul. Not only was he dead wrong about his brother's actions, but hearing that his sweet, gentle brother had been the victim of one of nature's harshest elements set a shock throughout his whole body. Paul had recovered enough to be sitting up on his own by this point, but now he'd fallen back against his pillow as Conway's words sunk into him. Paul was still conscious, but he certainly felt as if he could faint again.

It pained Conway to see this reaction from Paul, but knew it was only expected… even out of someone as cold-hearted and sturdy as Paul.

"The good news is… Reggie survived the lightning strike," Conway clarified, which at least put Paul at ease a little. The short amount of time that passed between being informed of the lightning strike and being informed that Reggie survived it felt like hours of pain and regret on Paul's end… not that he would admit it.

Still, Paul couldn't help but look paranoid as he looked to Conway. "And the bad news…?"

"Well…" Based on the limited information Maylene gave him, Conway was unsure of how to answer the question, but figured for Paul, a bad answer was better than no answer at all. "I'm not sure how much this has to do with the lightning strike since she didn't go into detail very much, but apparently your brother's on the verge of a mental meltdown. No one is able to contact your dad, so Reggie really needs you to be there for him in his time of need, okay?"

"A mental meltdown…" Paul pondered over such a thing, as he never heard such words and his brother's name used in the same sentence before. He couldn't even imagine what the situation would be like… and deep down, that frightened him a bit. "If you put it that way, then… I'll have to go. The old man can't be relied on for anything, even though this is exactly the kind of thing he should be doing if he were a real father."

Conway nodded in agreement. "Why is it that no one can get ahold of Brandon, anyway? Is he just that antisocial?"

Paul shrugged, pretending not to care about the way his father did things. "He considers himself a special case because he has a flying pyramid. The old man is never in the same place twice in Kanto, so it's impossible to pinpoint his exact location. For whatever reason, he never really installed communication devices into his Battle Pyramid. There's also the fact that he's rarely in that thing because he spends so much of his time digging up ancient artifacts…"

"Very peculiar," Conway noted, adjusting his glasses. "A father who's practically invisible to the entire world and even his family… no wonder you don't like the guy."

"Enough about him," Paul snapped, trying to get out of bed. "I'd better get moving right away to Veilstone."

Conway was quick to stop Paul and force him back into bed. "Hey, hey, no need for that. You're still sick and you've got no business moving about until you recover, okay? Don't worry about getting back to Veilstone City." He smiled, happy to brag about his recent accomplishments. "I've taken the liberty of booking us on a ship that'll take us to the Valor Lakefront. From there, we'll reach Veilstone by a bus that'll be waiting for us. We're setting out first thing in the morning, so you need to get as much rest as you can so you can at least board the ship without falling over. I'm going with you to make sure you get better _before_ we reach Veilstone City."

Paul looked annoyed again, mainly because he knew he was in yet another situation where he couldn't rid himself of Conway. Still, at least he meant well. "I'm not a baby, Conway. I can take care of myself."

"Big talk for someone who ignored my advice earlier today and ended up passing out during a Gym Battle," Conway snidely reminded him. "I'm beginning to suspect this inability to care for yourself trait runs in the family, you know. Either way, you might as well rest up as much as you can. Since we're so far away from Veilstone as it is, we'll be at sea for at least a couple of days. You _have_ to get better, because Maylene told me that Reggie might not take it very well in his fragile mental condition if he saw you the way you look right now."

Seeing it that way, Paul suddenly didn't want to argue with Conway about his physical health any longer. Even he couldn't deny he was well beyond sick due to his own carelessness. He wasn't sure what to expect from his brother, and in some way he felt partially responsible for the breakdown, but couldn't quite put his finger on why.

But as Paul thought about Reggie, something else came to mind; something important.

"Alright," Paul conceded, looking down and refusing to face Conway. "I'll take it easy during the trip back home. But I have a favor to ask of you, Conway."

"A favor, huh?" Conway mused, leaning back on his chair. "Promise you won't run out on me if I run an errand for you?"

Paul rolled his eyes. "What would I have to gain from doing that, especially in my condition? I want you to run an errand for me since I _can't_ do it myself now."

"Ah, alright then," Conway said, giving Paul the benefit of the doubt. "What would you like me to do?"

"Listen well," Paul instructed. "Since we're leaving Canalave early tomorrow, I want you to go on ahead to the library right now. You can get whatever it was you wanted, but I want you to pick up something for me."

Conway grinned. "Why, that's practically a privilege rather than an order! Was there something specific you wanted me to find?"

"Yes," Paul said with a nod. "Regigigas: I want you to take any book or article that mentions that Pokémon. Anything regarding Regirock, Registeel, and Regice should suffice as well. It's imperative that you dig up every last bit of information that library has to offer about Regigigas. Since it's the largest library in the Sinnoh region, I expect you'll find _something_ about it."

"Regigigas, huh?" Conway mused, smirking. "I think I remember hearing legends about that one… why are you so interested in that one, Paul?"

Paul sighed, waving his hand dismissively. "I'll explain it when you get back. Just hurry over there before the library closes."

Conway proudly stood up and thrust a fist in the air with pure enthusiasm. "Aye, aye!" He then resumed a normal stance as he looked down at his young companion curiously. "Anything you need before I go, then?"

"Mm…" Paul took the wet cloth and bag of ice (which had mostly melted by this point) from his forehead. "More ice and a new cloth. I'm guessing it's still just me who's burning up in here."

"You would be correct," Conway casually affirmed. "With any luck, we'll break that fever by sunrise. I'll let the nurse know what you need and be on my way to the library, then!"

Just mere moments after saying that, Conway rushed out of the room to perform his duties. For having to do so many things for such an ungrateful acquaintance, Conway was certainly taking it in stride. Paul could only look on, flabbergasted, until his condition would no longer allow him to sit up. Grunting, he plopped his head back against his pillow and closed his eyes. Paul was feeling miserable in more ways than one, now.

* * *

At the same time, far off in Kanto, the party of Misty, Tracey, and Brandon had just arrived at Pallet Town. By this point, the sun had set and it was quickly getting dark outside, so the group was fortunate to reach civilization just in time.

"In my experience, I've known Pokémon Professors to be rather busy," Brandon noted, looking down at his younger traveling companions. "You're certain Professor Oak will not be offended by having a visitor over this late?"

"Like I said, he loves having visitors," Tracey assured him. "It's not like it's his bedtime or anything. He's been known to pull all-nighters pretty frequently."

"Really?" Misty asked. "What in the world is so important for him to be doing at odd hours of the night?"

Tracey shrugged. "Unfortunately, I can never stay awake long enough to know what he specifically does at night. But I imagine he has less free time to dedicate solely to research since he's taking care of Ash's Pokémon, and that's even _with_ my help."

The familiar name struck a chord with the Frontier Brain. "Whose Pokémon did you just say the Professor was taking care of?"

"Our friend, Ash Ketchum's Pokémon," Misty answered. "He's a close friend and former traveling companion of ours."

Tracey nodded happily. "We've been in a multitude of wacky adventures together in the good old days… Ash is from Pallet Town, but right now he's in the Sinnoh region."

"He's already been through this region, the Orange Islands, Johto, and Hoenn prior to Sinnoh," Misty pointed out. "Since he's traveled so much, he's acquired a lot of Pokémon during his journey. But you know a trainer can only keep six Pokémon at a time…"

"… And he's made a habit of starting fresh in each new region he enters," Tracey added. "So after every League, Ash comes by here to drop off the Pokémon he acquired in that region. Professor Oak and I look after and take care of the Pokémon while he's gone."

"Of Pallet Town…" Brandon muttered. He then looked sharply to the young trainers before him. "Yes, I am familiar with him. He is one of the very few trainers who has ever beaten me and earned my Brave Symbol."

"Hey, that's right!" Tracey exclaimed, pointing at Brandon. "Ash did challenge the Battle Frontier just before he went to Sinnoh! I knew he conquered it… I can't believe I didn't make the connection earlier."

Misty was notably impressed. "Wow… Ash has come a long way to be able to beat someone like Brandon. I traveled with him when he was just starting out… and to think he's actually Frontier Brain material now…"

"Obviously, he declined the offer to become one," Brandon reminded. "And it took him three attempts before he finally defeated me, but he's quite talented for his age, I'll admit."

"That's why Ash didn't want to settle for being a Frontier Brain," Tracey said. "He's aiming to be a master… so don't be surprised if you see him in the Elite Four one day."

"Or better yet, the _Champion_ of the Elite Four!" Misty gushed, but then giggled. "Well, he hasn't even won a League Conference yet for all of his experience. Maybe one day he'll get his chance."

Brandon nodded. "I'm sure he will. Interesting that he's in Sinnoh now, though… that's where I grew up. My kids are still living there."

"Oh, wow…" Misty mumbled, taken aback that this gruff old man was actually a parent. "You have children…? I had no idea…"

"I get that a lot," Brandon admitted, rolling his eyes. "The little one is currently battling Gyms to qualify for the Sinnoh League Conference as well. Perhaps the two will cross paths one day… based on what you've said about your friend, they are equally experienced. If they were to meet and battle, it would be quite a sight."

"It's a pity you're stuck here in Kanto," Tracey sympathized. "That would be so exciting to see…"

"Oh! Look!" Misty interrupted, pointing ahead. "There's Professor Oak's Lab! And I see the lights are still on, so he's definitely home."

Brandon smiled at the sight. "Excellent. Finally, I should be able to get some answers about what I'm looking for."

"If Professor Oak doesn't know, then I highly doubt anyone else in Kanto will either," Tracey assured, knocking on the front door. "But even if he doesn't, he can always contact Professor Elm, Birch, or Rowan to see if they know anything."

The door opened, revealing a pleasantly-surprised Professor Samuel Oak. "Back so soon, Tracey? And I see you've brought guests this time!"

Misty nodded and waved. "Nice to see you again, Professor Oak."

"And this is the Pyramid King himself: Brandon!" Tracey introduced. "He came to us at Cerulean Gym wanting to speak with you personally."

Professor Oak grinned, shaking Brandon warmly by the hand. "Yes, Ash has told me all about you, Brandon! Your reputation certainly precedes you, but it is a pleasure to see you, of course."

"The feeling is mutual," Brandon assured as he and the others entered the Professor's home. "I've come here on urgent business, and you are my last hope to obtain any possible information on a certain Pokémon I've been tracking down for months."

Professor Oak nodded, absorbing the message thoroughly. He gestured towards Misty and Tracey and gave a suggestion. "Tracey, it happens to be dinnertime for the Pokémon. Would you and Misty mind terribly to take care of them while I speak with this prestigious Frontier Brain?"

"Ah, not a problem, Professor!" Tracey consented. "That alright with you, Misty?"

Misty nodded enthusiastically. "Sure. Let's do it!"

As the young trainers left to tend to Ash's Pokémon and the others, Professor Oak and Brandon sat down on a sofa to discuss the matter at hand.

"So," the Professor started. "You say you're looking for a particular Pokémon. Is this a rare one; perhaps a legendary?"

"I believe the one I seek is both rare and legendary, considering I have yet to find any solid information on it yet. However, I have relatively quickly discovered and captured three legendary Pokémon who are associated with it."

"Three others, you say…" Professor Oak muttered, grabbing a book and looking for it. "And the name of the Pokémon you seek is…?"

"Regigigas," Brandon said succinctly. "I have already acquired Regirock, Registeel, and Regice. Regigigas is the alleged leader of the other three."

Professor Oak nodded as he flipped through the pages of his book. "Regigigas… yes, I do believe I've heard of that one before. If I recall correctly, I had talked about the subject with Professor Rowan some time ago." He looked to Brandon with an apologetic look. "Unfortunately, the conversation was a brief one. Concrete information on Regigigas is indeed scarce."

Brandon crossed his arms and huffed. "At least you know about it. That's more than I've gotten from anyone else in this region. So you do know the basics… Is there anything else you discussed with Professor Rowan that would help me find it?"

"Unfortunately, I don't believe this book will help you," Professor Oak said regretfully. "This is a general index for the known species of Pokémon in this world, so it only gives bare-bones details you probably already know. It cites that Regigigas is the 'Colossal Pokémon', and an enduring legend states it had towed continents with ropes. Additionally, it is said to have made Pokémon shaped in its image from rocks, magma, and a mountain of ice."

Brandon frowned and nodded. "So it implies that my Regirock, Registeel, and Regice were created by Regigigas itself. There's nothing in regards to where it can be located if it still exists in this world?"

Professor Oak shook his head and closed the book. "Not a word. I suppose you already checked the library and museum in Pewter City… that would be your best bet for finding information on the Pokémon in this region."

"Of course I already checked Pewter City," Brandon grumbled. "It was the first place I hit _because_ I knew it was the most-likely area of Kanto that could help me find Regigigas. After failing to find information in Pewter City, I've traversed through the entire Kanto region ever since, but I've yet to get closer to finding any specific, concrete answers."

"As a Frontier Brain, I understand you're confined to Kanto," Professor Oak acknowledged. "But not all hope is lost. I have the technology to see if there are places in other regions that might have informative literature on Regigigas. I can go online and peruse through every library's listing in Johto, Hoenn, Sinnoh, and so on until I find a match. Once we find the appropriate book, we can simply order it so it won't be necessary for you to leave this region."

Brandon was elated to hear this. "That is a _brilliant_ idea! I must thank you for going through the trouble of doing this for me, Professor."

"Ah-ah," the Professor pointed out. "Not just for you, but for the sake of fulfilling my own duty as a Professor to document and study every species of Pokémon in this world. Still, it is my pleasure to assist you, Brandon. Follow me and we shall search through the library databases and see what is available."

Brandon silently nodded and followed Professor Oak to his computer station. He sat and watched Professor Oak scan all library databases across every region to find _any_ material containing information on Regigigas. Several towns and cities possessed museums and libraries, thus making the process long and arduous. Brandon grew increasingly tense as every individual search turned up negative, without any material on Regigigas whatsoever.

The hours passed… Johto had been cleared; there was no information on Regigigas there. Some time later, Hoenn's results ended up the same. Both men grew concerned as they began to scan through Sinnoh's databases.

"Brandon, you came from Sinnoh," Professor Oak noted as the scanner went on. "Did you try to find out anything about the Pokémon before you moved here?"

"Unfortunately, that was not even on my mind until well after I arrived here to take up the Frontier Brain position," Brandon responded. "It was many years ago since I've set foot in my home region… I'm sure many things have changed since then. But Byron, one of my friends from my childhood, is a Gym Leader in Canalave City these days. I recall there being a library in Canalave City…"

Coincidentally, the scanner was now analyzing the data from the listings of Canalave City's library. Professor Oak smiled at this.

"We may be in luck yet, then. Canalave's Library seems to be the largest one in the Sinnoh region… possibly of all regions," he pointed out. "You're more than welcome to use my video phone to contact Byron if we find anything in this library. He could send the materials to you personally."

Brandon smiled at this. "Yes, that would work out nicely… it has been a while since I've spoken with him. Most likely, he would throw a fit for me not calling more often, but he is every bit of an archaeologist as I am. We were rivals back in the day… he would be more than happy to help out."

Just then, the scanner beeped. Both men looked excited, as it meant that the computer had finally found something regarding the Pokémon they were looking for.

After a pause, Professor Oak's excitement faded. "… one result found in Canalave City… and in Sinnoh overall. I suppose that's better than nothing at all…"

"Beggars can't be choosers," Brandon reminded him. "I will take whatever I can get. Reserve that book so I can give Byron a call to mail it out to us."

As Professor Oak proceeded to do so, he frowned. "… There's a slight problem with that, Brandon," he said with a tone of disbelief.

Brandon glared. "And _what_ might that problem be?"

Professor Oak pointed to the screen. "See for yourself; it seems that the book has already been checked out… less than an hour ago, in fact."

"What?!" Brandon shoved the Pokémon Professor out of the way to see the screen, which clearly showed what was told to him. "Someone checked out the only book on Regigigas in the entire world?! Who could possibly…?!" He looked sharply to Professor Oak. "Find out who checked out that book! I want that person's name and information immediately!"

Professor Oak inched away, looking uncomfortable now with Brandon's temper. "Well, you see… not only do I not have the ability to find such information, I believe it's… illegal, in a way. Privacy regulations and whatnot… the library won't just _tell_ us who checked the book out."

Brandon stood up; and after nearly two hours of standing, he was ready to get out of his chair, anyway. "You're sure of this?"

"Well, yes," Professor Oak said, sounding fairly sure of himself. "But normally, the books must be returned within a week or so. All you'd have to do is wait a week until it becomes available again, and then…"

"We can't count on that happening!" Brandon interrupted. "We have no way of knowing if the one who took that book has any intention of returning it within its due date, or _ever_. I have to know who took that book, Professor. No average person would check out a book on such an elusive Pokémon without a purpose outside of simply reading the book!"

By now, the Professor was growing tired of this tirade. "You honestly believe someone is using that book for another purpose and will never return it to the library?"

"I have my reasons for my beliefs," Brandon assured. "I have no choice but to go to Canalave City myself and get the answers directly from the source."

"G-go to Canalave City?!" Professor Oak couldn't believe he suggested such a thing. "You mean you're going to Sinnoh?! But you simply can't do that, Brandon! You have duties here as a Frontier Brain in Kanto! You are their leader! What will happen if you leave?"

Brandon shook his head. "I will not be gone for long. I can put one of the others in charge in my absence. Anabel, Spenser, Noland… any of them would be suitable taking my place temporarily. Besides that, a new Battle Frontier has opened up. Any trainer aiming to conquer a Battle Frontier can always visit the new site."

"Oh, I believe I heard about that!" Professor Oak exclaimed. "The new Frontier Brains are some of the lucky few who have defeated you, correct…?"

Brandon nodded. "Tower Tycoon Palmer, another old acquaintance of mine, leads the new Frontier. I helped design the blueprints of the new Battle Frontier, and I believe it will be quite a challenge for anyone who dares to try and conquer it."

Professor Oak nodded. "And to think Ash would have been one of them if he accepted your offer…"

"That's why there are fewer of them at this time," Brandon noted. "But the others are indeed trainers of elite status; none of them had to beat me in three tries. His appearance is deceiving, but Thorton is the epitome of a strategic battler, so he will run the new Battle Factory. Dahlia was also deceptive in her appearance and demeanor, but she is one who knows how to battle against the odds... which is why she will represent the Battle Arcade. Then there is Darach, as well as his mistress, Lady Caitlin, who run the Battle Castle. They insisted on running the facility together. Then there is Argenta… she certainly came off as somewhat full of herself, but it was nice to have another older trainer to balance things out. She will be running the Battle Hall."

"Things are unbalanced on your turf, you mean?" Professor Oak asked with amusement.

Brandon rolled his eyes. "Let's just say many of them are rather… 'eccentric' in their own ways. Greta can be hyperactive, Anabel has been acting strange lately even though she's usually one of the more mature Brains of the group, Tucker is a little… flashy for my liking… Lucy is…" He paused. "I suppose I am being overly-critical, aren't I?"

Professor Oak chuckled nervously. "I'm sure it's only because you're tense about the book situation…"

"Oh, right!" Brandon shouted, now reminded of the current situation. "I'll have to contact all of the other Frontier Brains of Kanto to let them know about my temporary departure."

On that subject, the Professor gulped. "Y-you're certain you want to go through with this?"

"That book may be the only way for me to find and obtain Regigigas," Brandon said, dramatic in tone. "If it is lost or misplaced in any way by the one who took it, then I may never achieve my goal of obtaining the rightful leader and creator of the Regis I own. If you would, Professor, please contact the port in Vermilion City and book a trip to Canalave City as soon as possible. It isn't worth the risk to try flying the Battle Pyramid over a long distance at sea. I will contact my assistant and have him inform Scott and the Frontier Brains that I will be taking a temporary leave of absence."

"Ah…" Professor Oak looked uneasy as he walked towards his video phone. "You're certain Scott will allow this?"

Brandon nodded confidently. "I have tenure. Since I started this position as the Pyramid King when the Battle Frontier first opened to the public and have never asked for a break or a vacation in all the years I've worked there, I am certain Scott and the others will see that I have earned this 'break' and it is for a good cause, both for my own gain and the Battle Frontier's."

Professor Oak sighed; it was clear now that there was no way to convince Brandon otherwise, and he had logical reasons to support his stubborn nature on this issue. "Very well, then. Vermilion Port should still be open, so I'll book you for the next available trip to Canalave…"

"Excellent," Brandon said, smirking. "I appreciate your efforts, Professor. I feel the day I will encounter Regigigas will indeed be soon."

* * *

"Check it out, Sleeping Beauty!" Conway announced on his way back into Paul's room at the infirmary. "The only book in the entire Sinnoh region that has what you're looking for: Legends of Sinnoh – the God among the Regi Trio." He waved the book out so Paul could see it. Paul had been sleeping just then, but was easily awakened by Conway's sudden reappearance.

"Back already, I see…" Paul muttered, rubbing his eyes. "You only found _one_ book about Regigigas in the entire library…?"

Conway shook his head, pointing at Paul. "First of all, I was at the library from the time I left right until it closed, so I was there for roughly two hours. I'd hardly consider that being gone for a brief time." At that, Paul only rolled his eyes. "Secondly, yes; there's apparently only one book with any real information about Regigigas in all of Sinnoh. The lady who checked the books out told me it's probably the only book in the entire _world_ that has such information, so we're lucky to be in the right region that has it. I believe she told me much of the material was taken from transcripts originally written in Snowpoint City…"

"Wait, wait," Paul said, holding Conway up. "Snowpoint City…? 'Legends of Sinnoh'? Are you implying that Regigigas is native to _Sinnoh_ of all regions?"

"Not sure," Conway admitted with a shrug. "The title certainly implies as much, doesn't it? I didn't get a good chance to look through it, so I'm not sure what it's all about yet. Thankfully, we have a lengthy journey across the sea we'll be embarking on tomorrow morning, so that'll give us plenty of time to absorb all of the information in that book and glean the details of whatever you deem is so necessary about Regigigas."

Paul reached out towards the book to take it from Conway. "Well, I might as well get a head-start on it-"

He was cut off by Conway backing away so that Paul could not reach it from his bed. "Ah-ah-ah," he scolded. "Like I said, we'll have _plenty_ of time to read tomorrow and the next day or two while we sail off to the Valor Lakefront. _You_ need your rest, Paul. Sick as you are, you'll need all the strength you can muster just to be able to board the ship and reach our quarters without falling over. No offense; I'm just not looking forward to becoming your human crutch."

A low growl was heard on Paul's end as he bore a menacing glare towards Conway. "Don't you _dare_ tell me what I can and can't do."

"This coming from a guy who can't take care of himself," Conway muttered in a mocking tone. "Don't forget that your health may affect your brother quite severely if he sees that you're sick. If he's mentally unhinged already, the last thing you'd want to do is further unhinge him. Am I right, or am I right?"

Paul had forgotten about that, and almost the whole reason why he was returning to his hometown in the first place. Not because he was unconcerned for his brother's wellbeing, but because he was so ill that he appeared to have something of a short-term memory loss.

"Fine," Paul grumbled in defeat. "I'll just go back to sleep, then. You were interrupting that anyway."

"My apologies, then," Conway said with a bow, though it somehow sounded insincere. "Just wanted to let you know about the book. I shall turn in as well, since we both need to get up bright and early tomorrow and start our new journey."

Paul huffed as he lied back on his pillow and covered himself in his sheets again. "You realize the only reason I'm letting you join me this time around is because I'm sick, right?"

"I am well aware of that," Conway casually noted as he prepared himself for bedtime. "I have a feeling our little partnership will be making some unexpected twists and turns, regardless. We'll see what the future has in store for us…"

Paul covered his head and turned away from Conway, trying to hold in another frustrated growl. "Just keep that nonsense in your dreams, shut up, and go to sleep already."

"Of course, of course," Conway said, climbing into a neighboring bed and turning out the light. "Goodnight, Paul…" He sung out softly.

All Conway got in response was an embittered "Whatever…" as the two quickly drifted into a peaceful slumber to prepare for the journey ahead of them, and the anxiety-inducing task that lay before the both of them.

**

* * *

( TBC )**


	7. Lucky There's A Family Guy!

**( Notes:**

**Soooo, to compensate for the pathetically-short Chapter 6, I give you an OBSCENELY LONG Chapter 7!! But no, that's not the reason; no no. As I'm sure most of you who follow the anime spoilers know, Brandon is officially slated to re-appear in the anime in the near future (unconfirmed date as of this writing, but seems to be late May or early June by the looks of things) and will be BATTLING Paul for some reason and will also presumably be trying to capture Regigigas. Of course, I marked out and went batshit crazy, so I totally want to see if the anime is going to let the shit hit the fan and make this crazy theory canon after all. I will continue this story regardless of what the anime does, but until the episodes air, I'm putting this story on a small hiatus because I still want to make this relatively faithful to the anime, and I want to plan it out well. This turned out to be a MONSTER of a chapter because after I learned of this news, I promised to put out only one more chapter and then wait for the anime to do its magic. So naturally, I wanted to get EVERYTHING out of my system before the anime could put a word in, which made this chapter... hideously, hideously long. Still, it's full of juicy exposition and details. Many characters are featured since I went ahead and mended what would've been a huge plot hole regarding the Battle Pyramid, and... whew, there's just a lot of references. Lots of explanation to the dead mom at last, and next chapter, whenever it comes, is going to focus on Conway's family as well as his Gym Battle while Reggie's on the road to recovery. Oh yeah, I can't believe I got this out just before the dub of DP100 (Aiding The Enemy) came out; that episode was a major source of inspiration for this whole story, after all.**

**Anywho, I think this is one of the longest chapters I've ever made *period*, so if your eyeballs don't fall out of your sockets before you're through, I hope you enjoy this installment that I put loads of effort into, and I hope like hell that the anime pulls the trigger on the theory I've written my butt off all winter and a good deal of spring for! )**

**

* * *

  
**

Ever restless, Brandon stood at the bow of the ship in the middle of the night as he crossed the seas between regions for the first time in years. Professor Oak managed to book him on a late-night shipping appointment, which Brandon did not mind, as he did not care for comfort or anything of the sort, so long as he made it to Sinnoh as soon as he could. Since he had to leave so soon (and travel quite a distance from Pallet Town to Vermilion City in a short amount of time), he left Professor Oak to send the message to Scott and the remaining Frontier Brains of his temporary departure as well. Of course, Brandon thanked the Professor for all his hard work and assured him that he would not return to Kanto empty-handed.

"Ah, sir," a sailor suddenly interrupted Brandon's moment of deep thought. "We won't arrive at our destination until daybreak. It's probably best you get some rest and-"

"Brandon." The Frontier Brain curtly interrupted. "I despise the formalities." He looked to the sailor with a stiff frown. "You said we would not reach Canalave City until daybreak?"

The sailor flailed a bit and nodded with a slightly panicked look on his face. "Yes, s-… Brandon! Daybreak! Roughly 5 or 6 o'clock, the Captain estimates! I-I'm sorry I offended you, but still, I must insist you return to your quarters and rest until we disembark..."

After a moment of consideration, Brandon conceded with a nod. "Admittedly, it's hard to sleep knowing I'm finally returning to my home region after seven long years… but I have a job to do. I can reminisce after I retire." He looked to the sailor. "Where would my designated quarters be, now?"

"Oh, my apologies!" The sailor said, bowing. "Follow me and I'll show you. Don't worry; I'll be sure to wake you up when we reach Canalave's port."

Brandon gave a slight smile of contentment at that as he was led to where he would sleep for the next few hours.

* * *

On the verge of daybreak, an alarm clock sounded off. Conway was quick to jolt out of his bed and smack the noisemaker off, as he hated sudden loud, beeping sounds. He yawned loudly, usually not accustomed to waking up at 05:00, but it was a necessity for today in order to be prepared adequately to board the boat at the nearby port that would take himself and Paul on a long ride to the Valor Lakefront.

After scrambling for his glasses on the side table and putting them on, he looked to Paul, who was still soundly asleep with a cloth and a bag of what was once ice over his forehead; now water. Conway stretched out a bit before approaching Paul and removing the items from Paul's forehead and getting a feel of his temperature by pressing the back of his hand against his forehead. This was beginning to stir Paul, but Conway was getting a feel of his companion's progress before he fully awakened. Conway frowned, as it felt like Paul's fever had not broken after all as he hoped it would. He wondered if he simply didn't give Paul enough time to rest due to the fact that they had to wake up earlier than usual today, or…

"Maybe Byron was onto something when he said Paul had a weak body," Conway muttered, still discontent as he removed his hand and went to get a thermometer. By now, Conway had made enough noise for Paul to be disturbed. Once all the lights had been turned on, Paul could no longer resist the outside world and opened his eyes.

Paul couldn't hide it: he looked _and_ felt like crap.

He looked to the bed aside him and noticed Conway not present, but could hear him meddling in the bathroom nearby, so Paul knew he was still around. Wearily, Paul looked out the window to see that the sun had not yet risen, though daybreak was nigh. He lurched over to look at the clock, which was on Conway's side of the bedroom, and his eyes widened in disbelief.

"Are you kidding me?!" He complained, throwing his arms up. "You said 'first thing in the morning', not 'before sunrise', Conway! What were you thinking?!"

"Sorry I wasn't more specific about that," Conway called out from the bathroom. "Yesterday was rather hectic, and that's something you can't argue with." He came out with a thermometer in one hand while brushing his hair with the other. "Since you're up, would you mind taking your temperature for me? I'm afraid your fever hasn't quite broken yet, so you're going to have to go straight back to bed once we get boarded and into our rooms if we're to have you completely healthy when we reach Veilstone City."

Paul grumbled and took the thermometer from Conway's hand. "You said for certain that it would be broken by now," he reminded him, before sticking the thermometer in his mouth and patiently waited for his result.

Conway sighed and shrugged, gathering his belongings together and setting out a fresh pair of clothes to wear for the day. "I forgot to factor in the whole 'waking-up-earlier-than-usual' thing. My bad. Still, it should just be a minor setback… like I said, for the distance we'll be at sea, there's no way you'll still have that fever when we reach Veilstone City." Just then, the thermometer beeped, indicating that it was finished reading Paul's temperature. "Ah, take it out!" Conway instructed. "I want to see how well we've progressed since yesterday's readings."

Paul glared at Conway as he followed his orders and took out the thermometer and looked at the readings. Before giving an answer, he looked to Conway again with a skeptical look. "What exactly was my temperature yesterday?"

"103.5 degrees," Conway reported automatically, as if he memorized the detail. "Way above the human average, and borderline-dangerous. Why? What does it say now?"

Paul looked down and sighed. "102.5 degrees."

Conway's jaw dropped, and his arms fell flat to his sides; he even dropped his hairbrush. "No way. All we went through to make sure you were going to make it out alright, and you only went down a _single degree?_ We even had wet cloths and ice over your head almost constantly!"

"Obviously, it wasn't enough," Paul grumbled, tossing the thermometer aside. Just then, he was caught up in another fit of coughing, and Conway winced as he watched.

"Yeah…" Conway said after Paul's coughing subsided. "I just realized your throat's still sore and everything. Guess we should've invested in some cough syrup…"

Paul rolled his eyes. "Didn't I tell you at the Pokémon Center that it was an allergy infection?"

Conway's eyes narrowed, as he had long since been fed up with Paul's dismissal over how bad off he really was. "It was more than that and you know it," he said flatly. "It might've not gotten this bad if you just _listened_ to me in the first place."

"If I listened to you, I wouldn't have a Mine Badge right now," Paul retorted, now just looking childishly stubborn.

"Maybe not right now, but you would've had one eventually and you wouldn't have had to sacrifice your health for it!" Conway countered, which Paul was too tired and sick to fight against. After a moment of awkward silence, a frustrated Conway moved to his side of the bed to gather his fresh set of clothes and a towel.

"We're due to board at 06:30, so go on and get dressed," Conway coldly instructed without looking at Paul. "I'm going to take a quick shower. You can get yours after you finish your sleep on the ship. When you get dressed, I implore you to seek a nurse and get some medicine to help out the coughing and high fever. Apparently you're a little high-maintenance."

Paul growled at the insult. With the sudden adrenaline running through him, he wanted to punch Conway in the face then and now. He rushed up to do so, but was simply too slow. By the time he got up on his feet, Conway had already made his way to the bathroom and shut the door. He locked it as well… not that Paul would dare assault _Conway_… or anyone else… but especially not _Conway_ in the bathroom of all places. It was then that Paul experienced a bit of vertigo as he stood. He staggered and slumped against a wall for support.

Much as he hated to admit it, Conway was right. Paul needed to see a nurse for more advanced medicine if he was ever going to overcome this in time to see his brother. This wasn't the first time Paul had to deal with a nasty illness, truth be told… usually, he was lucky enough to be close to home and be cared for by Reggie. Still, Paul couldn't recall the last time he felt _this_ bad… and he certainly never fainted during any Gym Battles, either. The fact that he fainted during a Gym Battle where the Leader was an acquaintance of his father's told Paul that Brandon himself would be hearing of this eventually… and Reggie, too.

He knew Reggie would blow a gasket, as always. What mattered now is that he just needed to present himself as being healthy to his brother when Reggie himself was presently mentally unstable. As Paul staggered over to see a nurse, he briefly wondered what his father's reaction would be… but dismissed the thought, believing he shouldn't care what his father would react or think. Especially due to the circumstances surrounding his older brother, Paul despised his father more than ever now. He never would have imagined as he approached the nurse for medicine that said father was just a short distance away from him within the same city limits as his ship came into Canalave City's port.

* * *

"Seven years," Brandon said as he stepped off the boat and onto the deck of the port. "It seems the city has not changed as much as I suspected it would. Byron _would_ be responsible for that, wouldn't he…" He chuckled to himself. "He did always prefer the old-school style, as I did."

It was from this city where he parted from Sinnoh (and his family) seven years ago when he agreed to take up the Frontier Brain position in Kanto. It was a painful and emotional time, but due to the circumstances, in addition to his wife's death, he was left with little choice. Of course, Reggie was beginning to earn money of his own since he was close to becoming of age, but they were only meager wages and nothing neither he nor Paul could survive from. It was from Brandon's job alone that the family was able to keep going, but the boys were determined not to sponge off from him forever. He admired their drive and desire to become independent, but Brandon had his doubts in each of them.

Brandon frowned as he came upon the Canalave Library, his ultimate destination, only to find it closed. Of course, most stores were still closed at this early hour when the sun was only beginning to show up over the horizon, but Brandon was an impatient person, and was not fond of the fact that he would have to wait until 07:00 for the library to open its doors. It was not even 06:00 yet, so he still had over an hour to kill with nothing to do. Naturally, he looked towards Canalave Gym. Brandon knew if Byron hadn't changed his tune, he would be up and accepting challengers (or even visitors) at this hour. As he walked towards the establishment, he stopped abruptly when he felt a sudden rumbling sound from the ground. Very few residents were about this time of day, so Brandon was the only one taking notice to this.

All of a sudden, an armored head and body popped out from the ground in front of Brandon, nearly scaring the middle-aged Frontier Brain to death. The shock was enough to nearly take him off his feet, but he regained his balance, as this felt very familiar to him now. Brandon remembered instances like these happening to him very often to him in his childhood…

Once he got a good look at the man who scared the living daylights out of him, he glared and pointed accusingly. "You haven't matured a bit, have you, Byron?! Even now, all these years later, you still like to sneak up on people from under the ground like some sort of Diglett?"

Byron laughed loudly in pride, but was cut off as he recognized the voice; it was one he had not heard in a long, long time. Raising an eyebrow, the Gym Leader took off his headgear to look up and meet eyes with his childhood friend from long ago, now a Frontier Brain. "The heck…? I must've hit my head on a lead pipe or something… that can't possibly be you, Brandon!"

Brandon smiled with pride. "It's true; I've returned to Sinnoh on urgent business. But since the library won't open for over an hour, I figured it would be best to catch up with you. I see you're the only one in Canalave City who remains in top shape and wakes up this early every day to do your usual routine."

"Guilty as charged!" Byron admitted as he climbed out of his hole. "Only wish I could set a better example for these lazy good-for-nothings. Urgent business, y'say? You haven't set foot here in years, man!" He slapped a hand casually on Brandon's shoulder.

Under normal circumstances, Brandon would probably punch someone in the face for doing so, but he allowed it for the case of a childhood friend… "What's so important that tore you away from your duties from being a Frontier Brain? Did someone already tell you about your kids?"

Brandon looked at Byron strangely. "What would they have to do with the library? I need the library because Canalave's happens to be the only one in the entire world that has the one and only book with detailed information on Regigigas: a Pokémon I've been after for months. Someone just checked out that book last night, and I intend to find out who did so and why. I can say with certainty I deserve that book more than anyone else."

"Huh, intense," Byron mused. "Hope you can get that accomplished soon, 'cause while you're here, you really should see your boys, Brandon."

"Like you're one to talk," Brandon scoffed, knowing full well of the tension between Byron and his son, Roark. "One's off training in preparation to battle me once I capture Regigigas and the other is battling Gyms to qualify for the Sinnoh League Conference, only to advance to the new Battle Frontier immediately afterwards, and then battle me. Both are quite tied up at the moment as I am."

Byron scratched his head uncomfortably. "Uh… funny you should say that, bud… see, I actually fought Paul in a Gym Battle just yesterday."

That certainly got Brandon's attention. "You did…?" He then looked stern. "What was the outcome?"

"He had a green-haired little Four-Eyes with him at the time, yeah… so anyway, I was told that Paul was using this battle to train his Pokémon for endurance, seeing as my Pokémon are predominantly _Steel_-typed and all…"

Brandon nodded at these details impatiently. "Yes, yes…"

"Point is, strategically, he purposely had a bad choice of Pokémon against mine," Byron explained. "His Honchkrow, Ursaring, and Weavile against my Bronzor, Steelix, and Bastiodon. It came down to our final Pokémon, and it was an awful close one, let me tell ya…"

"Get to the point!!" Brandon shouted, tapping his finger furiously against his folded arm.

Byron nodded and bowed his head. "He won. He pulled out an ingenious strategy I hadn't seen since I battled you. I think I really was right way back in the day when you introduced me to the little guy. He may have been clingin' to Andrea for dear life, but I saw that fighting spirit just _waiting_ burst out and take the world on! I just couldn't see the same flame in Reggie, y'know?"

Brandon grimly nodded. "It seems you turned out to be right after all these years. Still… it pleases me that he is showing results in spite of his unorthodox training and battling style. He must be close to qualifying for the League at this point."

"There's a… slight setback," Byron mentioned. "It's part of why I think you need to see your boys. _Both_ of them," he emphasized.

"Setback?" The Frontier Brain was confused. "What do you mean?"

Byron looked down with regret. "I didn't realize it until after it happened, but it turned out that Paul was sick the whole time we were battling. Little Four-Eyes was beggin' him to hold back until he was better, but Paul shoved him away and insisted on battling me as soon as he could. He forced himself a bit too hard, I think, because he was looking really feverish and exhausted. I should've noticed it myself; I just thought the kid was nervous trying to live up to your legacy, so… he managed to win the battle and all, but while Four-Eyes and I were talkin' about the win, we saw that Paul fainted."

Brandon's expressions hardened. Distant as he was to his sons, he instantly became paranoid upon hearing of one of them becoming sick or hurt. Of course, this primarily came from the previous loss of his wife.

Byron knew that look well. He had been there for Brandon not long after he lost his wife, and attended the funeral. He looked somber and looked to the side for a moment. "Brandon… I know what you're thinkin'. Personally, to me, I think it may have just been a cold or the flu that the kid was just too stubborn to take care of, but rest assured he's being well taken care of now. I got the boy to a bed and he was transferred to the infirmary in this city as soon as possible. Early as it is now, Paul's still probably over there, so you wouldn't be going out of your way to see him."

"I understand," Brandon said quietly, nodding. "I should probably do that now." He started to turn off in that direction, but Byron held him up.

"Uh, one more thing, man," Byron said, still serious in tone. "I said you needed to see _both_ your kids. I wouldn't be sayin' that without a reason."

Brandon turned around, looking fearful now. "You mean to say…?"

Byron nodded, sadly. "Something happened to Reggie, too. Right after the battle with Paul, my Gym got a call in from Maylene. She's the Gym Leader of Veilstone City now, you know…"

"Maylene?" Brandon interrupted. "I remember that kid… she's barely my little one's age. She managed to become a Gym Leader?"

Byron smiled slightly. "Things may have not changed a lot here, but the story's a little different where you lived, Brandon. Either way, it's been less than a year since she took up the position. Still, she called my Gym because she was told Paul would most likely be here and she couldn't get ahold of you." He sternly looked to his old friend. "_No one_ can, actually."

Brandon groaned and leaned his face against the palm of his hand. "I knew this was going to come back and bite me one day… what's this one's story?"

"It's a bit more extreme," Byron warned. "So… brace yourself. Just remember Reggie's still alive and relatively okay right now, far as we know." But that certainly did nothing to put Brandon at ease. "Alright, then… Maylene called us, asking for Paul… Paul was out of it by this time, so Four-Eyes took the call for him. He reported back to me saying that Paul's presence was requested back at Veilstone City, especially since you couldn't be contacted, because Reggie had been found severely injured and unconscious while training at the base of Mt. Coronet where there were severe thunderstorms yesterday. Thought the kid had more common sense than that, but… anyway, long story short, Reggie got struck by lightning."

Brandon took this roughly as well as Paul did; in other words, he was stunned and silenced for many awkward moments until Byron had it in him to break the silence.

"I did mention that he made it out alive, right?" Byron clarified uneasily. Being reminded of that, Brandon shook his head (not to tell Byron "no", but to pull himself together and remind himself of what Byron had just told him a minute earlier).

"S-sorry…" Brandon murmured, being in a rare state of fear and guilt. "I-it's just… difficult to stay calm after hearing such a thing like that…"

Byron nodded in agreement. "I'm hearin' ya… if anyone told me that happened to Roark, I'd be flippin' out right about now. Even if I was told ahead of time that he survived that kind of thing." He looked to Brandon straight in the eyes as he said that, in mutual paternal understanding.

Brandon sighed. "I _should_ be reacting that way… why am I holding back?" His arms fell to his sides and formed into fists. "You would be right there in the hospital for your son, but I'm not…"

"It's really not fair to compare the two of us," Byron pointed out. "Roark and I may not be living in the same city anymore, but at least we're in the same region in pretty close proximity. You're thousands of miles away from your kids, Brandon… least you could do is get some long-distance contact set up with them and the rest of your familiars over here, but you can only do so much while you're in Kanto, man."

After so many years of resistance of the idea and a long period of consideration, Brandon looked up at the early morning sky. "Indeed… this must be a sign from the heavens. Losing Andrea was devastating enough. If I lost one of the boys…"

The Gym Leader nodded to Brandon. "Reggie and Paul are why you're bustin' your butt day-in, day-out as a Frontier Brain. It's a tough sacrifice to be that far away and still be a dad, I know. But it's gonna lose all meaning if you end up losing a son because of what you're doing, too…"

Brandon suddenly found it hard to stand on his own two feet as he was reminded of his abysmal family situation. Byron was fortunate he was close enough to Brandon as a friend; otherwise Brandon would have tossed him off a dock by this point. Taking the cue, Byron took a seat next to his childhood friend.

"The fact of the matter is, I've never been that great of a parent," Brandon admitted. "The only time I was adequate was when Andrea inspired me to be so. It isn't that I don't love the boys… it's just…"

"Not everyone's cut out to go it alone," Byron reminded him. "I'd doubt I would've been able to raise Roark right by myself without my wife's help, truth be told. I just got lucky." He looked to Brandon insightfully. "You realize that's why I kept tryin' to encourage you to remarry, right…?"

Brandon didn't stay in Sinnoh for long after Andrea died, but Byron was one of the few people outside of his sons to truly be there for him in his time of need. Unfortunately, Byron ended up overstepping a boundary by urging Brandon to move on a bit too early before he was ready. Eventually, it was becoming apparent that Brandon's readiness to find another wife was never here nor there; timing had nothing to do with it.

"I understand your heart was in the right place, Byron… and I appreciate the gesture," Brandon said softly. "But I wasn't ready seven years ago… and I'm still not ready now. And if I'm not ready now, I believe I never will be. I simply never pictured any other woman in my life. It may have been selfish of me to not give the boys another mother, but… looking at it another way, if I remarried, I wouldn't have been able to take up the Frontier Brain position and support the family. There was a good chance the kids wouldn't have taken well to a strange new woman in the household, either. And at this point, it's simply too late for a mother to enrich either of their lives."

Byron looked skeptical. "You really think so?"

"Of course," Brandon said tiredly. "One's going to be eighteen years old in about a month, after all. And the other was only… perhaps five, almost six when Andrea died. At present, he still doesn't remember his own mother's _name_… or anything about her, really, other than her profession. The only reason he knows that is because his brother's taken to following his mother's footsteps after failing to defeat me… not that I can blame the boy. He was simply too young to remember the details."

Byron looked up, thinking about the previous day. "Kinda ironic, now that I think about it. The day you introduced me to Paul, the lil' tyke wouldn't let go of his mommy without throwing a fit. I _knew_ something was off about him yesterday… like something in him totally changed since the last time I saw him. I think I know what changed, now."

"What in the world are you talking about?" Brandon asked, as he remembered Paul's clinginess to his mother in his early years, but wasn't sure where Byron was going with this…

"Kid grew up forgetting what a mother's love is like!" Byron deduced. "Can't deny he loved Andy with all his heart while she was alive, but without her and you leaving so soon after, all he had was Reggie. Reggie was gonna try to succeed where you failed as a kid, then changed his mind and went Andy's route. Paul looked up to his big brother before that happened… poor guy's had nothin' in his life but disappointment and failure and missing out."

Being told that so forwardly was enough to keep Brandon quiet for a moment, as there wasn't much he could say to argue against or scold his friend for talking out of place. Byron was close enough to the family to know the details; especially since he had battled Paul just yesterday. Byron would have easily been able to tell the difference between Paul of the present and the Paul he saw last. That was more for what Brandon could say about the Paul _he_ saw last in person.

"You're right," he finally admitted. "Andrea being torn away from us was the worst thing that happened to this family. I lost her _and_ that potential Elite Four spot on the same day. To compensate, I had to leave my children and go to Kanto to continue supporting them. So both of them had to grow and mature without my guidance, for the most part… at best, all I could give them was an occasional letter."

"Why didn't you just move them to Kanto with you?" Byron asked, though skeptical. "I mean, don't get me wrong… I'd still be ticked off at you, because I'd probably _really_ never see you again if you did things that way, but don't you think that would've been better for the boys?"

It was a complicated matter for Brandon; thankfully, he had time to explain this, and frankly… he knew he owed the explanation to Byron. For all the years he went without speaking a word to his childhood playmate, Byron deserved to know the details.

"My first boy was already in the middle of his first journey at the time of Andrea's death," Brandon noted, quietly. "It was eerily convenient for him to inform me at the time, since he was en route to Sunyshore City to earn his eighth badge while I was about to take the League Exam for the Elite Four position. Either way, after all was said and done… I didn't want to uproot my kids so suddenly, especially when my first one was about to have his first League Conference Battle. He didn't want that, and the little one didn't want to be separated from his brother."

Byron nodded and suddenly found the sea surrounding the majority of the city particularly interesting now. "I'm sure Reggie would've won the Sinnoh League if he weren't weighed down with the loss of Andy, Brandon. I was watching the kid in your place, remember? I told you all about it."

Unconvinced, Brandon tried his best not to look stressed out, but failed and slumped over in defeat. "The boy was defeated within the _first round_, as I recall."

Byron shrugged. "Like I said, he had a lot on his mind. I would've performed like crap anywhere if my mom just died, wouldn't you?"

Brandon chose to ignore that question. "Anyway, there's your answer to that question. After the kid finished his Sinnoh endeavors, he took his brother along with him to other regions to compete until the youngster was old enough to train himself. Not long after that, the first one battled me a few times and lost every time… then returned to Sinnoh for good."

"Pickin' up where Andy left off…" Byron mused before looking to Brandon. "Speaking of Reggie, man… there's a little detail about the lightning strike incident I forgot to mention."

Brandon's eyes snapped open. "Detail?"

"Four-Eyes wasn't sure if it was the lightning strike that caused it, but the reason Paul is off to see Reggie is 'cause Reggie's gone a bit, uh… off-kilter."

This explanation did not satisfy the Frontier Brain. He gave Byron a stern look. "Don't dance around the issue. Be straightforward."

"Geez!" Byron grumbled. "Maylene was cryptic about that as it was! What she _literally_ said was that Reggie's 'sick in the head'! She said _that's_ the reason why Paul needed to get to Veilstone ASAP and why she was so mad that she couldn't get ahold of you about it!"

Brandon suddenly stood up. That "sick in the head" comment just set off alarms in his own. Ever since Andrea died, Brandon inwardly worried if one day he'd have to worry about one of his sons meeting an untimely death due to inheriting her disease. There was no concrete proof that either of them had, as Andrea's condition was never quite determined even after the autopsy reports. The Frontier Brain lived many years fearing he'd have to go through this once more, and Reggie reminded him of Andrea enough already, even before she died…

"Guess that settles it," Byron figured, standing up with him. "You're going to Veilstone, then?"

"Well… yes, I am," Brandon said, nodding. "I'm going to check on my son in this city first, then extract a bit of information out of the library, since that's what I came here for originally… that should leave you plenty of time to rent me a boat, Byron. I'd like a small one so I can weave through the rivers of Sinnoh and make it to Veilstone City that way rather than being out at sea. Unless they've messed with the routes since I left, it shouldn't take more than a day or two to reach my destination."

Byron blinked. The routes _had_ been messed with quite a bit since Brandon left Sinnoh. "Uh, man, you really oughta…"

"Hah!" Brandon slapped his old friend on the back, completely misinterpreting his reluctance. "Byron, be honest with me; how many challengers do you honestly _get_ at this time of day?"

The Gym Leader looked confused. "Uh, average's about zero, actually. Lazy kids these days usually don't come a-knockin' on my Gym until after noon… what's your point?"

"Use that head of yours for once," Brandon urged. "You're obviously not busy if you've resorted to scaring residents half to death by popping out from underground, so it won't be too much for you to simply rent me a boat while I run my errands. The rest of the Battle Frontier committee is likely only now waking up and will soon realize that I have taken my leave of absence…"

"Whoa, whoa!!" Byron was amazed. "You left without tellin' them?!"

Brandon smirked. "Everything will be fine as long as I get what I came here for. I worked with Professor Oak just last night and he agreed to send off my temporary farewell notice, so it isn't as if I've gone all rebellious or anything. I'm merely looking for Regigigas, and the only way to find it lies within this region. Leaving Kanto was necessary, and I don't have time to _wait_ for the committee's approval while that anonymous man or woman has what I'm looking for."

"Uh huh…" Byron still wasn't sure about this move. Brandon was always an impulsive one, even as a kid. It always ended up getting him (and his friends) into trouble, and Byron wasn't about to believe that the trouble was going to end here. "Well, should they call me, I'll be sure to put in a good word for ya, okay? I'll let 'em know that your kids are sick and whatnot. They ought to ease up on you leaving like that, right?"

"Either way, I have tenure," Brandon noted. "They can't terminate me." He faced his friend and smiled. "Thank you for letting me know about what's happened. I'm sorry; there's no excuse for going this long without speaking to you. When I return to my Battle Pyramid, I'll be sure to have some open advanced communication systems installed… including some for myself."

Byron smiled back. "Anytime, Brandy! Hey, we'll make a promise, eh? When we retire, we can start up our digging competitions again! We'll even get Palmer in on it!"

Brandon scoffed and walked over to Byron. "First of all, I told you _ages_ ago to stop calling me that…"

"But it's our pet name for you, remember? Brandy and Andy?"

"It stopped becoming relevant when the latter passed on," Brandon reminded coldly.

Byron frowned like a four year-old would. "You know, if she were here right know, she'd put you in a sleeper hold for bein' so callous."

Brandon held back a chuckle, because he couldn't disagree. "She would, but that's beside the point. Those nicknames are practically antiques, _Turnip-Head_."

Just then, Brandon grabbed Byron by the hair and dragged him over to the hole that was made earlier by the latter.

"Owww!" Byron howled, obviously sensitive about his hair despite being a rather hardy man in other areas. "Yeah, speakin' of _antique nicknames_…!"

Unable to resist a sardonic smile, Brandon held Byron over the hole. "Still a whiner as always, it seems. Well, stop your complaining and rent that boat for me. I'll meet back up with you at your Gym after I've completed my own tasks. Try not to get sidetracked, Byron…" With that, he released Byron, thereby dropping him into the hole several feet below. Brandon was surprised to hear Byron cry out for as long as he did until he finally hit the bottom, at which he winced when Byron screeched.

"You freakin' jerk, Brandon!!" Byron shouted from the bottom. "I think I cracked my tailbone! Thanks a lot!!"

Brandon couldn't hold back his laughing now. He called back at Byron from above, "If you want to keep doing this with myself and Palmer after we're retired and you're already breaking your bones at this age, you may want to rethink that promise!"

"I'll get you back for this, Brandon!"

Brandon just smirked to himself and walked off, now satisfied with his work. "Hit me with your best shot."

"What?! What did you say?!"

Again, Brandon laughed as he approached the infirmary where Paul was supposedly held. In spite of the stress he was going through in order to capture Regigigas and the painful, depressing reminders of his family life, Byron still managed to lift his spirits, even inadvertently.

* * *

It had taken a while, since not everyone was accustomed to waking up so early in the morning at the exact same time, but on the call of urgent business, every Frontier Brain in Kanto was quick to engage in a multiple-party video conference as soon as Scott had received Brandon's notice from his assistant, Samuel (who had _still_ been in Cerulean City at the time), whom received it from Professor Oak, the last one who saw Brandon in person and booked his trip to Sinnoh late last night.

There were often multi-party video conferences amongst all Frontier Brains and Scott with the Frontier Brains in a circle in certain positions on the monitor with Scott in the center and guests in smaller frames under his. As Noland, Greta, Tucker, Spenser, Lucy, and Anabel logged on, all were more than a little surprised at first to see Brandon absent from his spot on the screen. Since he naturally woke up at early hours, he was usually the first one seen in the conference. Before Scott and Samuel had logged on, the other Frontier Brains stared up at the blank box on the screen that Brandon normally filled.

After a period of awkward silence, Greta broke the ice. "It's a little weird not being nagged about being 'so late' to the conference for once…"

"It could be a coincidence," Noland suggested innocently. "Maybe he went out digging early and found something interesting. He's been babbling about something recently; that's for sure…"

"Another one of those 'Regi' things, if I recall right," Spenser said. "Every time the man catches one, it seems a new one always pops up and he has to catch it… always wanting to catch the Pokémon with a name that bears a similarity to his son's."

Lucy nodded. "That's rather sweet, actually…"

Anabel, however, was a little more skeptical. "I can't help but feel that something is wrong, still. I'm sure Scott will set us straight when he comes on, but… this is no small ordeal."

"Duh, we're in a _conference_," Tucker remarked, which only made Anabel roll her eyes at the fellow Frontier Brain making light of her ominous premonitions. "And speaking of _late_, Scott'd better get his butt in here already. I'm wasting precious beauty sleep on baseless speculation!"

As if on cue, Scott appeared in position on the video conference screen. Samuel followed shortly after, but was strangely placed in Brandon's usual position on the screen, eliciting many surprised looks from the rest of the Frontier Brains. They knew him, but usually he was merely a guest. Being put in Brandon's position meant Anabel was right: something _was_ wrong.

"Sorry for the delay, folks," Scott apologized. "Needed to give Samuel instructions on how to get into the conference. I'm sure you've all noticed by now that Brandon's not here."

"Did something happen to him?" Lucy asked. "Is he alright?"

To that, Samuel, who was constantly in a rather humbled and slightly nervous state due to being in such direct presence of high authority, nodded. "P-Pyramid King Brandon is alive and well. I can attest to that. Th-that is most certainly not the issue."

"Then what _is?_" Tucker asked impatiently. "Why have we all been called in so early?"

"The issue is that Brandon has left the Kanto region as of last night in pursuit of a Pokémon named Regigigas," Scott informed. "He dropped by Cerulean City yesterday and met a kid who had ties with Professor Oak. By nightfall, he met the Professor and the two apparently located a book on this Pokémon that can only be found in the Sinnoh region, where, as you all know, Brandon originates from."

Noland still couldn't see the issue at hand. "It was a library, right? Why couldn't he just order it or… wait a bit if someone already checked it out?"

"The truth is, Brandon isn't a very trusting person," Samuel regretfully informed. "And when it's the only known book in the world on Regigigas… and, well… you know how long he's been searching for it, he's desperate to get the information of the person who checked that book out. He wanted to get to it so quickly that he completely forgot about me and the Battle Pyramid."

"Actually, he didn't want to take the risk of losing the Pyramid at sea," Scott corrected. "And I have a feeling he didn't want to wait until morning to debate about this little move in a committee, so he went ahead and did things his own way."

Greta frowned and pounded her fist against her desk. "Where does he get off thinking he can just… do that without asking permission?! He has a job to do as a Frontier Brain! We all do!"

"In spite of his actions, Professor Oak's put in a good word for him," Samuel mentioned. "He's promised to return and he won't do so empty-handed. It's not just for his own gain, but for Professor Oak's and the Battle Frontier's."

"There's that and Brandon has tenure," Scott added. "Can't really punish the guy on a level comparable to his actions. And still, his heart's in the right place… he just has to make sure he follows up on the promise and comes back with this Regigigas."

"So what are we supposed to do in the meantime for trainers who've earned six Symbols?" Anabel asked worriedly. "We can't honestly ask them to go all the way to Sinnoh, especially since _none_ of us know where he is exactly now. Brandon won't be in the mood to battle any of them either, I imagine…"

Scott nodded. "You're right, Anabel; he probably won't. So to spare the trainers the time and frustration, we'll redirect them to the new Battle Frontier facility instead. It'll be much less of a fuss to deal with and it's a smaller Frontier overall, so you can assure the trainers that for as long as Brandon might be gone, they might be almost done with the new one by the time Brandon's ready to take on new trainers."

"We're all still _active_, I presume?" said Spenser.

"Yes, all of you will continue about your duties as usual unless you are to come across a trainer with five Symbols. I know it's usually Anabel who faces challengers before Brandon, but there are exceptions, so all of you must be wary and inform trainers, should they earn their sixth Symbol from you, that they will be unable to earn their seventh until Brandon returns to Kanto," Scott reported. "I can handle the ones who've already earned six and are looking for Brandon right now."

Anabel covered her mouth to muffle a gasp. "Oh no!" She said in despair. "Since the Pyramid landed in Cerulean City last… Samuel, they'll be heading your way…"

"Oh man," Samuel groaned. "I'm just an assistant and referee. I don't think I'm cut out to ward away a bunch of anxious and angry trainers…"

"No need to sweat it," Scott assured. "You won't be sticking around in Kanto either, Samuel. I'd like you to follow Brandon to Sinnoh in the Battle Pyramid and check up on him for us."

There was a moment of silence before Brandon's nervous assistant gawked at the suggestion. "Y-you want me to go to Sinnoh as well…?!"

"Why not? Might as well not have the Battle Pyramid sit around Kanto under false pretenses," Scott reasoned. "Outside of that, I've heard that the weather in Sinnoh's gotten a bit unpredictable and dangerous lately. Anyone else heard about that?"

"I have," Anabel said. "And looking from that perspective, it may be best for Brandon's safety to have the Battle Pyramid on hand if he's going to scale the entire Sinnoh region for Regigigas. Home region or not, if the eco-system is behaving abnormally, he could easily be in danger."

Lucy nodded. "Especially if he's aiming for the northern regions. The conditions are especially harsh there in Sinnoh… very few people can survive it in normal circumstances. It would at least provide him shelter."

"So it's settled, then," Scott decided. "You all know what to do if you're the Frontier Brain giving out a sixth Symbol. I'll handle the ones who already have six, and Samuel's going to Sinnoh to monitor Brandon's progress for us, as well as keep him safe from the elements."

Samuel still looked apprehensive. "Are you sure this thing is made to fly such a long distance across the sea? Brandon's never flown it that way before… if it gives out, it's going to sink like a rock and I'll be a sitting duck in the middle of the sea…"

To that, Scott only smiled. "You're just not aware of the Battle Pyramid's full capabilities, Samuel. Trust me; fly it like you always do, just across the sea to Sinnoh rather than across Kanto. If you have any problems, you'll know how to contact me, but I don't think you'll have any."

"You look awfully sure of yourself…" Samuel noted, still uncertain of himself, but gulped and eventually conceded with a nod. "I-I'll do it, though. I am concerned for Brandon's wellbeing. I thought he was the type who would know better than to go off on his own without telling anyone like this."

Noland shrugged. "To be fair, he technically _did_ tell us since he left us a notice. But that's Brandon for you: once he's got his eye on something the wants, he'll stop at nothing to get it, even if it means he has to bend the rules a bit to get to it."

"Since we're settled, can we end the conference now?" Tucker whined. "I've got all this written down. I'll remember it when I wake up later."

Scott just sighed. "Alright, alright. Conference dismissed. Go about your duties as usual, everyone. Just don't forget what I've told you. I'll let you know when I get news of Brandon's whereabouts."

"Hopefully it won't be during the crack of dawn…" Tucker muttered as he signed off. One by one, the rest of the Frontier Brains (more politely) said their farewells and signed off. All that remained was Samuel and Scott.

"So, when are you planning on leaving for Sinnoh? It'll be a long ride… probably gonna take most of the day to get to the closest point." Scott asked.

Samuel already seemed to be engaging the Pyramid for a take-off. "Right now, actually. I already had a few kids arriving yesterday wanting a battle while Brandon was away and I promised I'd get back to them today… they'll be here any minute now, and who knows how many more. It'd be wise for me to get out of Kanto before most of the kids wake up."

Scott nodded. "Wise choice. You sure you can pull this off? Still looks like you've got the chills."

"A-admittedly, I am a little nervous, but I'm aware this is something I must do for the sake of Brandon," Samuel explained. "But like you said… if I'm experiencing difficulties, I'll contact you, right?"

"Right," Scott affirmed. "Keep me updated, then, and definitely let us know when you've found Brandon. And let _him_ know that as long as he follows up on his promise, he has my full support, as well as the rest of the representatives' of the Battle Frontier." He then smiled. "Best of luck, man. Hope you find him soon." And with that, he signed off and the conference ended.

Samuel finalized the flight preparations and the Battle Pyramid began to rise up from the ground just outside of Cerulean City. "Well, finding him will be easier said than done…" Samuel said to himself. "In a region like Sinnoh, that'll be like finding a needle in a haystack. If I hurry, maybe I can catch him while he's still in Canalave City…"

The lone assistant steered the pyramid in the direction that would get him to Canalave City the quickest and embarked on his journey, taking the Battle Pyramid with him.

* * *

"If it wouldn't trouble you, woman, I'd like the information on the person who checked out the book containing valuable information about Regigigas last night," Brandon requested to an unfortunate librarian. By the time he had finished conversing with Byron, he went to the infirmary to check on Paul, only to find that he had already left the vicinity to board a boat that had already left to take him to Veilstone City on a different route entirely. While slightly frustrated, he took comfort in the fact knowing that he and his son were both headed for the same place ultimately, just as soon as Brandon extracted information out of this girl.

The girl, looking horribly frightened, shook her head after a moment of hesitation. "I-I'm sorry, sir, but that information is confidential for safety reasons. You'll simply have to wait until the book is returned next week…"

"**NO.**"

Brandon's routine elicited stares from nearly everyone present in the library. The girl shivered and stepped back, only opening her eyes to remind him, "S-sir, we are in a library… I must ask you keep your voice down…"

To that, Brandon blinked and momentarily looked embarrassed at raising his voice in such a place. He sighed and shook his head. "My apologies, but my name is Brandon. I can do without the 'sir's and the like. Are you not aware of the Battle Frontier?"

"Brandon…" The young librarian looked down for a moment and pondered. "I do… and something seemed familiar. Then it hit her. "Ah…! You're from the Kanto Battle Frontier! Pyramid King Brandon…?!"

Brandon nodded. "So you know my intentions are genuine. The book that was checked out was the only known book in the world with concrete information on Regigigas, which is a Pokémon I have been after for several months. How am I to be certain this person will return the book within a week? That book can't possibly be one your visitors check out on a regular basis."

"Actually, you do have a point there," the librarian said as she scanned for previous check-outs of the book in question. "I wasn't even aware we had this book until the boy asked for it last ni-.. oops."

Brandon smirked. "So it was a boy who checked out the book. And it was _you_ who allowed him to take it!"

The librarian sighed, knowing she was caught now. "Okay, _yes_, I did. The one who checked the book out is a frequent visitor here, so I don't believe you have reason to worry about him withholding the book beyond its due date. He's a very courteous young man."

"A frequent visitor," Brandon noted. "So he lives here?"

"Not at all," the librarian said automatically. "He lives in Veilstone Ci- ah…! It's too early to be interrogated like this! I'm breaking the code of honor!"

It was funny in a sad sort of way, Brandon thought, to fluster the librarian with the simplest of information-gathering techniques. "Veilstone City. A boy who lives in Veilstone City. Well, you know I am a man of honor, woman. I'm not going to harm that boy or anything, and I have an ill son to go see in the same vicinity. You might as well give me his name and physical description and save me the trouble."

The librarian trembled. "But I…"

Brandon shook his head. "I'm going to find him sooner or later. The only damage you'll do to yourself is by aggravating me by withholding the rest of the information, because there are other urgent matters I must tend to as soon as possible. The sooner you give me a physical description and a name, the sooner we can get this over with."

Thankfully for Brandon, this librarian was very young and insecure, especially in the presence of someone like a Frontier Brain. After a pitiful cry, she conceded, though lowered her face to hide her shame. "Th-the boy's name is Conway. He has dark green hair and glasses… i-is that satisfactory for you… Brandon…?"

He took the details into consideration. "A young man named Conway from Veilstone City, green hair with glasses…" Then he suddenly froze as he remembered something that Byron had told him earlier that morning:

_Byron scratched his head uncomfortably. "Uh… funny you should say that, bud… see, I actually fought Paul in a Gym Battle just yesterday."_

_That certainly got Brandon's attention. "You did…?" He then looked stern. "What was the outcome?"_

"_He had a green-haired little Four-Eyes with him at the time, yeah… so anyway…"_

Brandon's expressions turned grim. Would it have been a simple coincidence that Paul had been accompanied by some other green-haired fellow in glasses? But since when did Paul take on followers in the first place? Something wasn't adding up. Brandon wondered why he didn't catch that oddity and inquire about it in the first place.

He certainly had something to ask Byron the second he would return to the Gym to see if his old friend had rented his boat yet.

"That will do fine," Brandon finally said to the librarian. "I appreciate your help." He wasted no time leaving the library as soon as possible and headed straight to Byron's Gym. It all started coming together for him… if Conway _was_ an associate of Paul's, it would make perfect sense why the Regigigas book was checked out.

It prevented _him_ from getting access to it: just as he feared. He hoped this was still all just a coincidence, however. He'd get some quick answers from Byron soon before receiving his rented boat to cross the rivers of Sinnoh in hot pursuit of Veilstone City, now for more than just one reason.

* * *

While Brandon learned the hard way about how the routes of Sinnoh had changed the river paths since he left the region, Conway and Paul were already well on their way to the Valor Lakefront. As Paul slept throughout the morning, Conway decided to go through the Regigigas book for him and write down the important details he found relevant. He had no idea of what Paul's intentions were yet, but a chunk of their week being out at sea would cut into the time Conway would have with the book before he'd start getting charged with those dreaded late fees.

It was almost evening again when Paul finally woke up, feeling slightly less horrible than before, but still not very good. Conway had taken a nap on his bed, roughly halfway through the Regigigas book with a stack of pages filled with abridged notes from the book itself. Paul couldn't help but notice that Conway hadn't as much as touched his own books yet. Regardless, after holding in a cough, he sat up, shoved himself out of bed, and scooted over to Conway's side to grab the book and the notes.

Paul mainly looked at the notes Conway had taken, preferring his more direct and straightforward definitions and explanations, but did look to the book to see the sketches within it, which Conway's simply couldn't compare to. However quiet Paul tried to be, though, Conway could hear the shuffling of his papers and opened an eye to see Paul wide awake and scrutinizing his work.

"Oho… _you_ certainly took your time getting out of bed," Conway teased. "Have a nice sleep? You pretty much missed the whole day, and it was actually nice out today."

Paul only grunted at that as he continued to read Conway's findings. "Yes, I see you've been enjoying the outdoors just by seeing all this paperwork, you hypocrite."

"Aha, true…" Conway couldn't argue. "I just didn't expect you to spend the entire day sleeping. I have to have these books sent back within a week or else I'll get charged late fees. Since we're spending a chunk of said week on this ship, we have to make the most of our time, so I took the liberty of highlighting the important details of Regigigas for you… well, as far as I've read, anyway."

Just then, Paul looked skeptical. "Actually, I never meant to return this particular book, Conway. I can pay you back for the late fees."

"I-it's more than that!" Conway insisted. "You're seriously never returning that book to Canalave's library? I never would have agreed to this if those were the terms! It isn't just the staggering late fees, Paul! It's my reputation! I'm one of their most faithful customers! What are they going to think of me if I just take one of their books and never return it? It's not like they can order a replacement! That's the only known book of its kind in this world! It _has_ to go back eventually!"

"I have my reasons," Paul said calmly. "Look, if it means that much to you, I'll just make an account over there. Transfer the book in my name and the heat will be off of you. Will that make you feel better?"

"It most certainly will not!" Conway yelled, flailing. "I'll have just aided a library criminal! My conscience will never let me live that kind of thing down!"

Paul glared, as his patience already wore thin by now. "Look, I-" He was cut off by another coughing fit. To this, Conway sighed and walked over to Paul's belongings.

"Here, take your medicine," Conway said, rolling his eyes. "One dosage twelve hours ago isn't going to make that nasty cough of yours go away. Remember, you need to be relatively healthy by the time you see your brother."

Conway gave Paul his cough syrup, which the latter took hesitantly. The thick, nasty liquid practically tasted like poison to him when he took it earlier that morning. His companion watched with amusement to see the medicine choked down in such a manner in desperation to not cause a huge scene.

"Taking it straight, Paul? You don't need to prove your 'toughness' to me," Conway assured as he stood up again. "I knew that much already the first time we met. I'm going to get a soda. Let me get you something to wash that down and you can explain yourself about why you don't want to return the book, alright?"

It didn't take long for Paul to accept the offer. "L-Lemonade," he requested, trying his best not to regurgitate the medicine. "M-make it fast…"

Thankfully for Paul, it didn't take Conway long to come back with the beverages – and he even brought in enough to last the two the rest of the night. After Paul was able to wash away the horrid flavor of medicine in his mouth, he finally (though reluctantly) filled Conway in on his family situation starting with the letter he received from his father. And surprisingly, Paul managed to vent out some frustrations and feelings of guilt he'd held in for a while after telling Conway the entire situation and why he did not want the book returned to the library and into the potential clutches of his father.

"… you said Reggie had a… 'mental meltdown', right…?" Paul asked Conway with great reluctance.

"That's what Maylene told me," Conway answered. "Either way, it sounds like he's behaving abnormally and she didn't tell me either way, but I somehow doubt it was directly related to him being struck by lightning. I'm guessing you've come to the same conclusion?"

Paul closed his eyes and nodded. "A lot of that depends on _how_ he's acting right now… Reggie acting abnormally could mean a lot of things. But if he were exhibiting traits opposite of his own during the training… hypothetically, acting strict, cold, cruel, ruthless…"

"Basically, he'd be acting like you and Brandon," Conway pointed out.

That put off Paul for a moment, and he gave Conway a nasty glare before continuing. "Anyway… my point is, if he were acting like that, then yes, this might partially be my fault… and partially the old man's as well for putting such an unreasonable time limit on him. My threat could have sent him over the edge… I only figure that much because Reggie's the only one of the three of us who still cares about keeping the family together."

"He really doesn't sound like the big doofus you make him out to be," Conway couldn't help but notice. "It's pretty selfless of him to be going out of his way to keep the three of you as a semi-functioning family. Kind of weird that he acts so different from you and Brandon, but…"

"If I had to guess, Reggie probably takes after our mother," Paul assumed half-heartedly. "I can't say for certain; I was too young to really know her before she passed on. But I'm pretty sure the old man shuns Reggie for emulating her. I always wondered if breeding was something Reggie _really_ wanted to do, considering how far he'd come as a trainer before just… giving up after losing to the old man. I never could forgive him for that. That's why I was so insistent that he should win against him this next time around… I thought that maybe…"

Conway frowned. "That threatening him would inspire him to work harder and make him strong enough to defeat your dad? Plausible theory, but it looks like Reggie might be a sensitive type. You're going to have to leave your personality at the door when we see him at the hospital."

"That goes without saying," Paul mumbled. "But you understand why that book can't go back to the library now, right? I got this book to buy Reggie some extra time to train, and I may have just set him way back now. For as long as the old man's been trying to find Regigigas, eventually, he's going to get sick of looking around in Kanto and he'll start snooping around in other regions to find information. If he finds this book, it's over for Reggie. He's nowhere near ready to fight yet, especially after what's happened now."

"Who would've thought that you of all people could get someone in an emotional bind like this?" Conway grumbled, looking conflicted. "Our best route might actually be… to let your brother decide, though. This is _his_ fate we're playing around with here."

"What, are you kidding?" Paul asked, looking at Conway as if he were crazy. "You said he's mentally unstable. Regardless of how old he is, he can't make decisions for himself right now until the doctors find out how to fix him."

"Or _we_ find out how to fix him," Conway amended. "Maylene wouldn't have called for you if she didn't think she needed you. And since the three of you are about the loosest definition of a family there is, that's saying a lot, Paul. I think your presence will make a big difference, and he'll hopefully start acting a bit more like his old self again…" He cleared his throat purposely. "You might want to consider taking back that threat you threw at him the day he sent you that letter, hint-hint?"

Paul looked up at the ceiling and groaned. "I have a feeling I'm going to regret the fact that I told you all of this one day. But yes, I obviously have that in mind. I'll do whatever's necessary to get Reggie back into his right state of mind. He's got more to lose than I do at this point."

"Then are we agreed?" Conway asked, extending a hand to Paul. "We'll leave the fate of the book up to Reggie?"

Paul stared at Conway's hand for a few moments before shaking in an uncertain agreement. "Alright… I'll leave it in his hands when we restore him back to his true self."

Conway nodded and took the Regigigas book back from Paul. "In the meantime, let's try and finish this thing off and absorb as much as we can before its fate is decided. Really, consider yourself lucky, Paul…"

After taking a sip of his lemonade, Paul whipped around to Conway and looked to him with a strange gesture. "Lucky? Why did you just say that…?"

"All I know is… I wouldn't mind having an older sibling that held as much love and respect for their family as yours does."

There were a number of questions Paul had for that statement, but wisely decided not to use any of them and went back to consuming his lemonade.

* * *

The next three days differed depending on the point of view. Brandon was confronted by several dead ends at the rivers where there previously weren't any as he went through the rivers of Sinnoh to Canalave City, which greatly frustrated him, until he remembered he had a collection of Regi giants that could easily carry the boat to the next continuing river. He was more than a little angry when Byron admitted to him that he completely forgot the name of the green-haired, bespectacled companion of Paul's because he was so attached to the name of "Four-Eyes" and only actually heard his name one single time – and that was _before_ the mind-numbing battle – so Brandon still wasn't sure if "Conway" was the one traveling with Paul or not. Still, he was determined to make it to Veilstone City before his youngest son, no matter what newfangled obstacle came in his way.

Paul and Conway, on the other hand, were almost entirely consumed in their reading during their trip at sea and on the bus ride. In ample time, they plowed through the Regigigas book and written out all of the relevant notes and details into Conway's notebook for safe-keeping regardless of what would happen to the actual book. And while the progress was still slow, Paul was progressively getting better, dropping a degree or two in temperature each day until he was finally at 98.6 degrees after Conway measured his temperature at the Valor Lakefront. His coughing fits had mostly vanished, he was able to walk on his own without stumbling or staggering, and his throat was no longer sore. Conway had found it very peculiar of Paul to get himself nearly killed over a cold and then remain nearly incapacitated for four days, but by the time they finally reached Veilstone City, it seemed that Conway fulfilled his promise to Maylene after all and ensured that Paul would return to his hometown alive and healthy for the mental wellbeing of his brother.

The bus was kind enough to drop the boys right in front of the hospital, where they both looked up at the ominous building standing before them.

"Well, it was nice and sunny at Lake Valor, but it's dreary as always over here, I see," Conway observed. "Doesn't really aid the imagery very well right now, does it?"

That remark elicited a curious stare from Paul. "What are you talking about?"

Conway innocently smiled to Paul and shrugged. "Just saying… it's another dreary day in Veilstone City! And now we're faced with this monster of a hospital with your mentally-unstable brother."

"Thanks for reminding me," Paul grumbled. "Let's just get this over with."

They entered the facility and immediately approached the front desk, where a Nurse Joy seemed to be writing something down. After Paul cleared his throat to get her attention, she hopped up a moment in surprise to see she had visitors.

"Oh…! My apologies; I didn't see you," she said. "Can I help you gentlemen?"

Paul frowned, immediately labeling her a flake of a receptionist and unworthy of her position. Regardless, he remained civil. "I'm here to see my brother, Reggie. He's being cared for by the Gym Leader right now."

Conway nodded. "And I'm his escort, Conway."

"Oh, yes!" Nurse Joy said with a gasp. "You're Paul… I should have recognized you at first. Oh, of course. Let me buzz in Maylene so she can escort you to where your brother is, alright? Please take a seat here in the lobby; this shouldn't take long."

As Nurse Joy went about her duties, the boys took a seat and sat with nothing but an uncomfortable silence between them until a young lady slightly older than them with short pink hair and athletic gear came from the hallway, looking elated to see Paul and Conway just down the opening.

"You made it!" She cried out in relief as she ran over to them. Slightly confused by her dramatic nature, the boys stood up to greet her. "Oh goodness, I'm so glad! I know it couldn't be helped, but those four days felt like an eternity for me…"

Paul raised an eyebrow. "It's been _that_ bad?"

Maylene looked away, seeming distant. "It's really something you should see for yourself, Paul. I can't… possibly describe it well enough to do it justice. But we had no choice. Since he was so unstable and volatile, we had to keep him sedated until you arrived. I had the nurses remove the IV from him after I got the call, though, so he'll be coming to shortly… I hope you can get him to calm down."

The boys began to follow Maylene the way she came on the way to Reggie's room. Maylene continue to explain the situation along the way.

"I'm really sorry I interrupted your journey for this, Paul," Maylene apologized. "I probably wouldn't have called if I knew there wasn't anything you could do to help… still, I'm glad to see that you don't look sick at all anymore."

Paul looked taken aback that Maylene, the Gym Leader he made a fool out of in the past and completely broken the spirit of, was actually _apologizing_ to him over something and expressing delight over him being healthy instead of ill (which after how he treated her, he assumed she thought he would've well deserved it), but simply shrugged it off. "No, it's probably for the best that you called. It isn't as if the League competition is coming anytime soon, and my brother's notorious for being self-sacrificial when he doesn't need to be."

"I'm afraid _that_ Reggie is gone right now," Maylene forewarned. "So you'd better brace yourself."

"How exactly am I supposed to get him back to normal again?" Paul asked, somewhat confused. "I've never actually witnessed Reggie act like anything outside of his ordinary, usual self."

Maylene started to look fearful as she stopped at a door; the door that led to Reggie's room. "Paul, I can't tell you how. I just know I haven't been able to do a thing to help him, and neither have his Pokémon… all of which have been injured as a result of the incident."

"What, did they _all_ get hit by lightning or something?" Conway asked. "Was it staccato lightning?"

"No, none of them were injured by the lightning," Maylene clarified, shaking her head and motioned for the other two to lower their voices as they entered the room. "And Reggie's behavior has nothing to do with the lightning, either. The Nurse thinks Reggie's held in so much repressed stress over the years that… he just finally snapped. She's already diagnosed him with borderline personality disorder, and he could have other things, too…"

Paul stopped short as soon as she said that. "They diagnosed by brother with a _mental disorder?_"

Reluctantly, Maylene nodded. "There could be other genuine things wrong with him, too, Paul. You didn't let me finish. He had done some _terrible_ things before he was struck by lightning. And when I mean terrible, I mean something along the lines of what you would do."

"Along what Paul would do?" Conway echoed. "But if Reggie's Pokémon weren't injured by lightning, then you're saying…" He was beginning to understand the severity of Reggie's personality shift now.

Maylene lowered her head. "The wounds were all checked out. Aside from Infernape, Reggie's Pokémon were 'training' against each other much more roughly than they normally should be. They've gotten a lot better over the past four days, but when they were brought in, they were all covered in bandages." She looked up for a moment to glare at Paul. "See? That's something along the lines of what you would do, isn't it?"

Paul was briefly shocked to be called out like that, but closed his eyes and looked away. "How I train my Pokémon is none of your business, Maylene. Really, as pathetic a Gym Leader you are, I wouldn't go around criticizing how other trainers raise their Pokémon."

As Maylene glared, Conway grabbed Paul by the arm and took him aside, angrily whispering to him.

"Didn't we agree that we'd 'leave your personality at the door'?!" Conway reminded.

"That was for _Reggie's_ case," Paul reminded. "We never agreed to anything about Maylene. And anyway, it's only the truth. I'd know because I fought her not that long ago."

Conway just smacked the side of his own head in frustration. "Oy vey, _Paul_. I guess you weren't lying when you said you didn't remember your mom. Only guys without mothers would go out of their way to treat women so disrespectfully!"

Maylene cleared her throat, getting the boys' attention. "Ahem, boys? I'm standing right here. And I can still hear everything you're saying." She then smiled a little. "I appreciate your attempts to be courteous for Paul, Conway, but you'd have better luck carrying on a conversation with a brick wall."

"Ah… sorry, Maylene," Conway apologized, looking flustered. "He certainly has been a handful since I ran into him on the ship to Canalave City."

"Well, don't worry about his rudeness for my sake," Maylene assured. "Paul may think he'd broken my fighting spirit after he beat me, but if that were the truth, I wouldn't still be a Gym Leader right now. I owe it to Reggie and the others who revitalized my spirit, and life has been wonderful for me ever since. There's nothing Paul could say to bring me down now; not even if be beat me again."

Paul rolled his eyes. "Well, how wonderful for you. But I still see that you're bitter."

Maylene adamantly shook her head. "I'm not sore about the loss, Paul; I'm being serious when it comes to the details of Reggie's incident. I haven't even mentioned the most telling detail about the change in his attitude… well, the change that I hadn't witnessed myself yet, anyway."

"One you hadn't witnessed yourself?" Conway wondered. "Oh, you mean Infernape's case?"

"That's right," she affirmed. "While Reggie's Pokémon had taken a significant beating in all-out brawling each other… Infernape's case was different. Infernape's opponent was Reggie himself… and according to Infernape, all of this was Reggie's idea."

That was enough to shut Paul up for a moment before he could gather his thoughts. "Wait… wait a second. You're saying my brother organized what was essentially a bloodfest and called that training, and beat up his own Starter all _before_ getting struck by lightning?"

By this point, they finally reached the bed where Reggie had been for four days. Paul tried his best to wall up any emotions that tried to escape from his face when he saw his brother, still in bandages and looking like a wreck, on the hospital bed.

"See for yourself," Maylene said, pointing to Reggie's hand, which was still completely wound up and bandaged. "He pretty much shattered his hand right there. When they analyzed it, the marks indicated that the injury was self-inflicted. He must have punched a rock on accident while trying to hit Infernape. And Infernape… Infernape ended up getting injured more severely than any of the others. But by this point, they're all recovering well… even Reggie… right hand aside; he's physically doing well considering what happened to him."

"And that's nothing short of amazing," Conway remarked. "It took Paul almost the entire trip here just to recover from a cold. Reggie recovering from a lightning strike in a shorter period of time… he was either born lucky or he's genetically resistant to instant death or something." He couldn't help but smirk at Paul. "Guess that means you got the short stick of the gene pool. Might want to stay indoors during lightning storms from now on."

Paul replied by shoving Conway aside to sit at a chair next to Reggie to get a closer look at him. His brother currently looked peaceful, as the anesthesia was still in the process of wearing off; he would be regaining consciousness soon enough.

"When we brought Reggie here, he woke up and claimed that he was talking to his mother," Maylene informed, sitting at a chair on the other side of the bed. Though Conway was displeased with the shove he just received, he took a seat next to Paul. "I assumed he was having a near-death experience and reliving past moments of his life, but he swore to me that he was… 'presently' talking to his mother, who urged him to not give in to dying and to move on, saying that the family needed him and whatnot…"

Paul looked up to Maylene, giving her an "are you _serious?_" gesture, to which she sadly nodded. He then shook his head.

"It's just near-death psycho-babble; what can you expect? He was hit by lightning," Paul said. "Of course he's going to be imagining deranged things like that."

"That's not the end of it, I'm afraid," Maylene said regretfully. "And this part I'm sure is _not_ psycho-babble. Reggie practically cried when he realized that the whole… talking-to-his-mother thing was just a dream. I tried to calm him down, telling him how happy we all were that he made it out alive and well… and that's when he angrily snapped at me. He said that _wasn't_ the case. That _not_ everyone was happy to see him alive and well… namely you and Brandon."

Paul's eyes snapped wide open when Maylene said that. Conway gasped at the same time, looking to Paul.

Maylene's saddened expressions worsened as she witnessed the reactions. "That's right… Reggie outright told me that he doesn't believe either of you care about him anymore. He was highly upset that neither of you were here, and… it sounds like he really does believe that neither of you really love him because he feels like he's the weakest link of the family. That's when he started breaking anything he could find, and that necessitated the nurse to knock him out until I could get you to come here." She took in a deep breath, feeling the pain all of them were going through at this time. "That's why I think you're the only one who can bring Reggie back to his usual, loving self, Paul. I don't know how, but he wants you here with him. I really wish I knew how to get your dad in here too, but I can only do so much…"

After a moment of silence, Paul's shoulders slumped. The expositional onslaught hurt more than he thought it would have. "This… this really _is_ all my fault…" He said quietly.

Seeing Paul devastated like this made Maylene not want to ask Paul directly. Instead, she looked to Conway. "What's he talking about…?"

Conway sighed. "We talked about this on the way to Lake Valor while we speculated what was actually wrong with Reggie since you weren't too specific about it over the phone. Paul brought up the fact that Brandon sent them both a letter…"

"… Challenging them both to a battle," Maylene finished. "I know that much already. I was going to look over Reggie's place while he trained. Go on."

"Ah, right, sorry," Conway muttered, taking off his glasses tiredly and wiping the lenses as he continued on. "So Paul was in Floaroma Town at the time Reggie sent him a copy of that letter. He told me that he actually threatened Reggie this time around that if he failed to defeat Brandon, he'd see to it that he'd have Reggie disowned from the family. Furthermore, Paul didn't want to receive any more calls from him unless Reggie had a Brave Symbol in his hand. So, Reggie was facing some rather weighted and risky odds that logically fit this little puzzle as to why he 'snapped', as you call it."

Hearing this only made Maylene angry. She glared and looked straight at Paul, not caring that he was still reeling from the guilt. "Paul! How could you?!"

"I'm going to apologize and take it back," Paul said stiffly, but could not bring himself to look at anyone but his brother just yet. "If I'd known it was going to end up like this, I never would've said that to him."

"You never should've said it to him at all!!" Maylene argued. "That's a horrible thing to say to someone who spent the majority of his childhood raising you in his mother's place!"

Conway shook his head, putting his glasses back on. "Really, it's a horrible thing to say to _any_ relative. But what matters now is that Paul's learned his lesson, and hopefully the apology's good enough to get the old Reggie back, right?"

After considering that, Maylene calmed down and sighed. "You're right… at least, I hope it's enough. He's brought up Brandon, though. I'm not sure if Paul alone can completely heal him. Even if Paul takes back what he said, Reggie's still under a pressure-building time limit."

"Well, Brandon is an element none of us have any control over. Nobody can contact him, et cetera. We don't have the means to go all over Kanto hunting for him, so that's something Reggie's just going to have to… come to accept, wrong as it may be," Conway reasoned.

"Huh…? Accept what…?"

A new voice entered the conversation, and all parties looked to the source: Reggie had finally woken up. He was still drowsy, but otherwise seemed fairly normal, but a little unaware of his surroundings.

"Reggie, you're awake!" Maylene cried graciously.

Reggie smiled to Maylene, though his eyes remained halfway-closed. "Hey, Maylene… what're you doing here?"

The smile on Maylene faded. "Reggie… do you remember where you are…? And what happened?"

Reggie scanned his surroundings in front of him. "Hospital…" He murmured. He took a moment to register what he could remember, then yelped in pain when he lifted his right arm to extend his fingers, only to find that he couldn't and it hurt _immensely_ when he tried to do so. With that jolt of pain, things were coming back to him more quickly now. The smile on Reggie's face went away as well.

"I was struck by lightning… I remember now," Reggie said quietly. "Infernape was backed up against a tree. I could feel it coming, and I knew what was going to happen… so I jumped and pushed Infernape out of the way-…" He paused. "Is Infernape…?!"

"Infernape's fine," Maylene assured. "And you look a lot better now than you did when you woke up last time."

"Last time?" Reggie inquired. "What are you talking about?"

Maylene looked to the side. "The lightning-strike incident was four days ago, Reggie. You were awake briefly the first day, then knocked out for the rest."

"… oh…" Reggie then looked depressed. "Well… even if Infernape did make it out alright, that doesn't excuse what I did… and I suppose the doctors have had plenty of time to figure out what that was, right?"

Maylene nodded. "It wasn't right, but it isn't entirely your fault, Reggie. Either way, we all forgive you."

Reggie blinked, looking confused. "What do you mean by 'you all'…?"

"Try looking the other way, genius."

Reggie looked around to see his younger brother trying his best to keep up his usual stance in spite of his depression and guilt over the situation. With just as much effort, Paul fought hard to keep the smile off his face when Reggie finally noticed him, but there were some feats even too difficult for Paul to perform. He gave his big brother a little wave from where he sat. "Hi, Reggie…"

"Paul…" Reggie was nearly speechless. He almost thought he was seeing things, but ended that thought when his brother (reluctantly) initiated a hug. With his one good arm, Reggie clung on tightly to him. "Paul, how did you…?!"

"Maylene let me know," Paul responded, cutting Reggie off. "I had just finished earning my Mine Badge at the time, so… I only just now got here. I'm sorry you had to go this long with just Maylene for company."

Maylene rolled her eyes, but couldn't help but smile at the scene. Conway too found this endearing, but felt the need to clear things up for Reggie's sake.

"Actually, Reggie, he would've gotten here sooner if he hadn't gotten _sick_ right after the Gym Battle," he mentioned. "I advised him numerous times to wait it out, but he simply pushed himself too far. Either way, yes, we were quite far away at the time of the incident, so it was going to take us a few days to get here either way. But fret not; I took good care of your brother for you and he appears to be in excellent health."

Reggie looked closely to his brother and smiled in approval. "Looks like it, anyway!" Then he paused for a moment and looked to Conway while Paul moved away from his brother to scowl at his companion. "Wait a minute, who are you? You… kind of look familiar."

Conway smirked. "Like any good big brother, I imagine you watched the Tag Battle tournament that was televised in Hearthome City a while ago. I battled against your brother in the finals."

"And you lost," Paul reminded him.

"Yes, yes, I lost, you won, and didn't even want the prize either as I recall," Conway muttered as he resumed his friendly gesture towards the friendlier brother and extended a hand towards him. "Name's Conway."

Reggie nodded and shook Conway's hand. "Yeah, I definitely remember you now. You had the Heracross. You had some pretty neat strategies, as I recall. I've already met your partner from that competition, Dawn, as well."

Maylene's smile widened as she looked to Conway. "So we _were_ talking about the same person that day! Dawn helped me regain my fighting spirit!"

Again, Reggie was confused. "What…?"

Simultaneously, Maylene and Conway sung out, "No need to worry…!" That was the breaking point for Paul.

"Can we stop talking about the stupid girl for one second?!" Paul cried out. "This is a serious issue here and you're all pretending it isn't there!"

"O-oops, got caught up in the moment," Maylene mumbled as she returned to her seat. "Sorry."

"Excuse _me_, mister smiley-face-who-jumps-up-and-hugs-his-brother. You're lucky I don't have a camera, or that would've been awesome blackmail to use against you to aid, say, Ash," Conway muttered as he returned to his seat.

Reggie looked to his broken right hand again, thinking back to what he did four days ago. What he'd done in the hospital hadn't even come to mind, or perhaps even slipped his mind completely. "It's true that this is serious… I let things get too far. I let the pressure consume me to the point where I was willing to throw away all of my morals… and do anything to win." He looked to Paul. "You were right all along. I don't fit in this family."

Paul stared at him, glaring harshly, before telling him in a low voice, "That is… without a doubt, Reggie, _the_ stupidest thing that's ever come out of your mouth. Don't you _dare_ ever say that again."

Of course, Reggie remembered their last video conversation and was therefore confused. "But you said…"

"What _I_ said was wrong," Paul assured. "I never should have threatened you the way I did, because this is exactly where it ended up putting you: in a hospital. I almost lost you, and if I had known that ahead of time, I never would have said any of that, so…" Paul took a deep breath and sighed before finishing his apology. "I'm officially retracting all the threats I made in regards to the challenges the old man made out to us. You're not the weak link in our family, and you can bug me on the phone whenever you want; I don't care."

Reggie smiled, but somehow couldn't believe it. "I feel like you're letting me off too easily…"

"Letting you off too easy would be getting you out of the old man's challenge completely," Paul corrected. "You're nowhere near ready for it and this is going to set you back. Thankfully for you, Conway and I pulled some strings to buy you all the extra time you need."

Maylene blinked. "What are you talking about? What did you guys do?"

Paul gestured towards his traveling partner. "Show them, Conway."

"With pleasure!" Conway reached down into his bag and pulled out none other than Legends of Sinnoh – the God among the Regi Trio for Reggie and Maylene to see. "Behold, my friends: _the_ only book on Regigigas in Canalave City's library, in Sinnoh, and in the entire world… not to mention the only _copy_."

Maylene and Reggie gasped simultaneously, speechless initially.

Paul smirked. "Yeah, I thought you might like that."

While Maylene continued gaping, Reggie suddenly regarded the situation seriously. "So you did this on purpose… you knew I'd have to battle once dad found Regigigas, so you're trying to give me as much time as possible to train by taking the only book that has information on Regigigas' whereabouts and keeping it out of dad's hands."

The smirk faded away from Paul's face. "You see a problem with this?"

"Well… dad's letter said to report all information on Regigigas straight to him if we find any, remember?" Reggie reminded him. "Withholding the information would be dishonest."

Now Paul was frowning. "So after all I did to ensure that you could have time to battle the old man in a relatively fair fight, you want to throw all of that away to abide by his clearly lop-sided and unfair rules and lose _again?_"

"That's not what I meant!" Reggie insisted, looking uneasy. "I appreciate this, Paul; really, I do, but…"

"But you don't accept it?" Paul assumed.

Reggie wasn't quite sure yet, actually. "Well, don't make it so black and white. I mean, I haven't even gotten out of the hospital yet, and…"

"It's a fairly easy question to answer, Reggie!" Paul said, demanding in tone. "Now answer it."

Before he could, Maylene interfered. "I think what Reggie's trying to say is that he's not sure how he feels about how he's going to go about his training from here on out yet," she tried to reason. "Give him some time. Let him recover first."

"Yeah, about that…" Conway said with a tone of lingering. "I checked out that book and it's due in three days. Paul and I agreed to leave the fate of the book up to Reggie before we got here. I really don't want to be charged late fees, so after the three days, I'm shipping it back to the library."

"We have read through the book already, however," Paul noted. "Even it can't seem to pinpoint a specific location, but it strongly hints that Regigigas is located somewhere around the outskirts of Snowpoint City."

"Here?!" Maylene exclaimed. "In Sinnoh?!"

"That'll certainly make it difficult for dad to get Regigigas, then," Reggie mused. "He's stuck all the way over on the Kanto region. Being a Frontier Brain is a pretty big deal, so I don't think he can really leave Kanto unless it's a big deal… and I'm not sure if they'll let him leave for Regigigas. I mean, he didn't need to leave Kanto for the other three, as I recall."

"Exactly," said Paul. "So really, why torture the old man by even dangling it over his head? I'll check out the situation myself since I'm heading up to Snowpoint City anyway for my next Gym Battle, but Reggie… I implore you not to give the old man the book if you know what's good for you."

Conway looked slightly guilty. "I hate to pressure you, really, but for Paul, this is an awfully nice gesture, don't you think?"

Reggie looked to the book and sighed. He wanted to do the right thing, but… he really wanted to win and bring his family back together, too. And he wasn't a fool; he knew it would hardly be fair going up against a man who would have three – make that _four_ Legendary Pokémon on his team while he would have none.

He looked to Maylene, then Conway, and then a very expectant Paul. With a conceding sigh, Reggie hung his head down. "Alright, I won't give the book to dad. Thank you, Paul… you just took a great deal of weight off my shoulders."

"Well, that doesn't give you an excuse to be lazy," Paul reminded him. "You're still going to have to work yourself to death almost every day just to have a shred of hope of ever getting that Brave Symbol; you're _that_ out of practice. Your old methods aren't going to cut it this time; I hope you know that."

"Of course I know that," Reggie grumbled, frowning. "Why else would I end up here? My usual training regimen doesn't land me in a hospital. I just panicked and lost all sense of who I really was for a moment there… I'm going to have to do a bit of soul-searching to find out what the right way to train is."

Paul was about to open his mouth, but Reggie was quick to shut it by interrupting him. "And _you_ of all people do not need to be giving me suggestions on how to train, Paul. If I recall correctly, you haven't beaten him yet, either."

"Fine, I've done more than enough for you anyway," Paul said snidely, looking away.

Suddenly, Conway snapped his fingers, surprising everyone. "A-ha! I got it!"

"Got what…?" Reggie asked quietly.

The lenses of Conway's glasses lit up as he grinned and looked directly at Maylene, which made her fearful for a moment. "The perfect plan; that's what I got. I became inspired after refereeing Paul's match with Byron. See, I'm kind of like a Pokémon Freelancer. I like to dabble in a bit of everything, but I spend more time reading up and studying the material than actually practicing it. But I've decided now that this is the best time to try out my first official Gym Battle! And I would like you to be my first opponent, Maylene!"

"M-me…?" She said with disbelief, but then she smiled. "Well, I suppose I don't see why not. You know, this is exactly how Dawn got me back into my groove…"

Conway laughed out, in pure rapture to have another thing in common with Dawn. "No way…! That's _way_ too good to be true…!"

Maylene nodded. "It is true. Instead of helping me, I suppose you'd like to battle me for Reggie to watch so he can get an idea of how he can train, though?"

"Ah, yes, that's about what I had in mind!" Conway affirmed. "We should inspire Reggie with our own battling techniques to help him find his own _new_ way to battle and train. With any luck, he'll find the successful path he's been looking for all this time and it won't be one that's too intense and Paul-esque."

Paul grunted. "I'm sitting here right next to you, you know."

Conway just smiled. "Yeah, I know."

"My Gym is closed for renovations, unfortunately," Maylene informed the boys. "But Reggie said I could use his backyard to take on challengers whenever I wanted. So when we get Reggie out of the hospital, I'll see that we schedule a battle as soon as possible."

Reggie yawned. "Why not today? Seriously, the only thing physically wrong with me is my hand. I don't think I need to stay in a hospital for that. The other Pokémon are okay, aren't they…?"

"They've healed up just fine," Maylene assured. "Every one of them, and they've all forgiven you, so don't worry yourself about that. I'll go see a nurse and see about how soon we can get you out of here, alright?"

Maylene waved to the others and almost made it out of Reggie's room until she collided into another person who came into the room just then and fell onto the floor.

"Oh…! Oh my!" Maylene flailed and looked around the floor for anything that was dropped or spilled. "I'm so sorry, Nurse Joy! That was totally my fault! I should've been watching where I was goi-"

"**NO**."

Reggie and Paul knew the tone, volume, and voice of that negative remark all too well, and almost thought they were imagining it. Still, not wanting to take chances, Paul yanked the Regigigas book away from Reggie and hid it away. Thankfully, the bearer of the voice had yet to face the patient's bed yet, as he was still focused on who had just run into him.

Meanwhile, Conway winced as the sudden noise nearly made him soil himself. _Nearly_.

"Okay, 'sir' and 'mister' are annoying enough to put up with on a daily basis as it is," said the man, obviously none other than Brandon, who had finally made it to Veilstone City and the hospital after several mishaps with the river routes. "But 'Nurse Joy'?! That is definitely a new one and the most insulting so far. You've got guts to be calling someone like _me_ that, kid."

"Brandon?!" Maylene exclaimed, surprised and horrified at the same time. "B-but that can't be! You're supposed to be in Kanto…!"

Reggie, Paul, and Conway viewed the scene from the corners of their eyes. The first two were in pure disbelief to see their own father back on his home turf for the first time in seven years, while Conway was merely intimidated.

"Hm?" Brandon scrutinized the young lady as she picked herself up from the floor. "Oh, I see… you're my city's representative Gym Leader now, aren't you? I expected you to be a little taller by now."

The fact that Brandon knew that piece of relatively recent news took Maylene off-guard. "Wh-wha… how did you know that?!"

Brandon simply smiled. "Byron told me about it when I came to this region a few days ago. Still, you look fit and healthy. I trust you're representing Veilstone City well, Maylene?"

"Ah, as best I can…" Maylene said shyly, never having been addressed by name by Brandon in the past before. She'd certainly never defeated him in battle, and assumed he was only doing so now because she'd become an important person in his home city. "I just started the position recently, so I can't tell you I'm perfect, but I'm improving with every passing day!"

"Your honesty is admirable, at least," Brandon said approvingly. "If I weren't in a hurry, I would test your skills, but I have many things to take care of."

Maylene couldn't help but shiver a little bit, as Brandon's presence continued to give her and the others the chills. "Y-yes, that would be fine, Brandon. I'm sorry for mistaking you for someone else… I just never in a million years would've imagined you being the one coming through that door." She then remembered that she _did_ make her distress call to Paul to Byron's Gym at the beginning, and Brandon had been talking with him. "I suppose Byron told you about Reggie, then…?"

"He told me about both of those little trouble-makers," Brandon said gruffly, before looking down to Maylene with concern. He hadn't once thought to look to Reggie's bed yet. Whether it had slipped his mind or he was reluctant to see what would be before him was uncertain, even to himself. "How are they…?" Brandon asked her quietly.

Seeing the concern from the father himself relieved Maylene. "Follow me," she urged. "I think you'll find that it's not as bad as we made it out to be initially. You've got two very strong boys, Brandon."

She led him to where Reggie laid in his bed, accompanied by Paul and Conway, sitting to his left. The three young men had been dead silent the entire time, all still registering the fact that Brandon was actually here in Sinnoh with them for some strange, mysterious reason, and he managed to catch up on the current events much more quickly than they gave him credit for. Regardless, Reggie couldn't _not_ be happy to see his father in person for the first time in years, and smiled to him, waving with his good hand.

"Good to see you, dad," he greeted shyly. "I'm really sorry I worried you… I had no idea you were even going to find out…"

"Normally, I wouldn't have," Brandon said. "Things will have to change around here; that much is for certain…"

Brandon looked to Paul, who briefly locked eyes with his father before looking away without saying a word.

"Paul's just being moody; don't worry about him, Brandon," Conway assured. "If you heard about him from Byron, then you should know that he has since made a full recovery as well." He held out a hand to greet the Frontier Brain, completely unaware that he was about to blow his own cover. "It's an honor to meet you, anyway; my name's Co-"

Brandon had not been paying much attention to anyone other than his sons at this point and completely cut Conway off when he noticed Reggie's injury and took the nearest seat to the right side of Reggie's bed.

"Boy, what in the _world_ happened to your hand?!" He asked, perhaps making a bigger deal out of it than he should have. Paul wasn't sure what to make of this yet; all he cared about right now was making sure that Brandon did not find that book.

Reggie was a bit shocked to see his own father make a big deal out of what was a relatively minor injury, considering what he'd just survived through four days ago… "Ah, that's a long story… I accidentally smashed my hand against a rock while I was outside training before the lightning hit me."

Brandon blinked, almost in disbelief that he forgot that detail entirely. Mainly, it was because Reggie certainly didn't act like someone who'd been struck by lightning… "Amazing in itself that one such as yourself could survive something like that… but you've recovered so quickly. It's as if it never happened to you."

"Well…" Reggie looked down, seeming ashamed of himself. "I should've known better than to be training outside when the conditions outside were like that…"

"That's right. You should have," Brandon interrupted, sounding very strict. "And normally, you _do_ know better. What made you lose your mind all of a sudden?"

That's when Reggie gave some thought to his past actions and wondered if, after all, he was doing the right thing by battling him in the first place.

Reggie could no longer look at Brandon. "I knew my usual training methods weren't going to work this time. They hadn't in the past, and they wouldn't now, especially with me being out of practice… so I decided I needed to change the way I trained my Pokémon, and myself… and be consistent with it, and brave the elements if I was going to ever have a shred of hope of winning against you. I was desperate," he admitted. "But I went too far. I think I temporarily lost my mind, and all of my Pokémon ended up getting needlessly hurt as a result. I'm just glad they didn't get it as bad as I did… still, that may have been a sign that I need to give this up already. I'm not changing my mind about my career even if I did beat you, dad… the only reason I want to beat you is to show you that I'm…"

Brandon's expressions hardened, initially looking angry when he heard his first son considering giving up before trying again, but wanted him to finish, at least. "You're…?"

Reggie finally brought himself to look at Brandon. "I wanted to beat you… to show you that I'm _not_ mom, okay?!"

But even as he said that, the look Reggie was giving him… that angry, stubborn look reminded Brandon of Andrea in her younger, wilder days. He was beginning to feel uncomfortable, but now that he made it all the way here, he knew he couldn't run away from this now.

"… Fair enough," Brandon finally said. "I can see where you would draw that sort of conclusion. You never told me this was the true reason why, though."

"Well… it isn't the _only_ reason," Reggie admitted. "I'd kind of like to have this family back as a functioning unit again in some sort of capacity… but I know that's asking for too much, because you can't leave Kanto, and Paul and I _won't_ leave Sinnoh."

Brandon shook his head. "While it's true I can't quit my duties as a Frontier Brain, I'll see about trying to establish a firm communication system with you. I believe this incident was a calling from beyond telling me that there may be future incidents like this where I just won't conveniently happen upon an old friend who knows what happened to you. Still, I'm going to be very cross with you if you give up now."

"But…" Reggie was hesitant. "I… I hurt my Pokémon, and I ended up nearly getting myself killed…"

"Yes, that was idiotic of you," Brandon said, quite bluntly. "But you've learned not to go that route again. If I didn't believe you weren't naturally talented in battling, kid, I wouldn't be pushing you as hard as I have all your life." He looked past Reggie and straight to Paul, who'd been listening quietly the entire time. "The same goes for you, but unlike your brother, your talents have not yet gone to waste, obviously."

Paul just looked annoyed at that remark. "So I guess I'm supposed to take that as a compliment, then. Thank you so much, then, Honorable Old Man."

"Hush; I'll deal with you in a bit," Brandon assured, going back to Reggie. "I suppose I would be lying if I said your choice to be a Breeder hasn't bothered me; it has. And… yes, it's difficult _not_ to compare you to your mother. But put yourself in my position for a moment, if you will, and imagine the reaction I had felt when I heard about what happened to you from Byron."

It didn't take long for Reggie to piece it all together. "Dad… you thought I was going to…? Like her…?"

Brandon nodded. "It felt very much like déjà vu. But I can plainly see here and now, without having to battle you, that you are not as much like your mother as I previously thought. To be able to recover from a lightning strike the way you have, you must have either incredible endurance or incredible luck. I doubt even I would have such endurance or luck if I were in your position."

Reggie laughed, trying to fight the tears back. "Oh, stop that. You know you could."

"Soon enough I'll be looking much less invincible than I do now," Brandon assured him. "Comes with the aging. But will you reconsider and battle me when I find Regigigas?"

"We won't let him give up," Maylene cut in. She looked to the others. "Will we?"

"Not a chance!" Conway concurred. "We've already got a strategy to help out Reggie's inspiration, so there's no way we'll let that amount to nothing."

"Oh, I almost forgot," Reggie recalled, blushing in embarrassment. "They were going to help me find a better way to train… now I just feel like an idiot for causing a scene… heh." He looked to his father and smiled. "Sure, I'll battle you. Can't promise I'll be as good as I used to be when I was a kid, but… I'll try and make the best of the time I have left before you find Regigigas."

Now Brandon looked guilty. Like Paul, he too began to wonder if the pressure building from not knowing when he would be called upon for the battle of his life was what caused Reggie to initially snap and lose his mind.

"This is a special occasion, boy. I _want_ you to be at your best when you battle me," Brandon insisted. "I understand there are time constraints, and… I have reason to believe that the reason you ended up here may be my fault, in a way, for needlessly pressuring you. So…" He closed his eyes and sighed. "Take as much time as you need. You may come to me, rather than me coming to you."

Everyone – Paul included – gasped after hearing this. But Paul glared soon after.

"Wait, Reggie pulls the pity card and you're letting him off easy?" Paul inquired. "Just like that?"

"Were you even listening, kid?" Brandon asked his second son, annoyed to no end. "I want the best from him, and not only can I not get the best from my out-of-practice kid under a time constraint, but I'd rather not risk another incident like this. I'd like to hope you would feel the same way. Either way, you of all people shouldn't be complaining about others having it easy. You still have a few more Gyms to earn Badges from, a League to compete in, and a Battle Frontier to conquer before you have to worry about facing me. If it's anyone who has it easy between the two of you kids, it's _you_."

Paul scoffed. "Please, don't get me started on that. Pokémon training's pretty much like riding a bike. You may get rusty, but you never forget how it's done. All Reggie has to do is tear himself away from his motherly genes and act like his own gender for once, and he ought to be back in top shape in no time. _I'm_ the one who has to do all of the dirty work just to get a crack at you, old man. And believe me; I want it a lot more than he does."

"Would _you_ like a time limit instead, then?" Brandon challenged. "I imagine it would be much less fair to you, being less experienced, but you seem to be practically begging for it."

"Why bother?" Paul rhetorically asked with a smirk. "You're never going to find Regigigas."

Just then… Brandon smirked back. "Funny you should mention that, actually. There's something I've wanted to ask you."

Paul folded his arms and glared. "Ask away," he said, almost as if he was daring Brandon to hit him with whatever he had. Reggie was beginning to look skeptical about this. Maylene and Conway were equally confused.

"Since when have you taken to bringing along traveling companions?" Brandon asked, pointing directly at Conway. Conway then squeaked a bit in fear, looking extremely nervous. Paul began to look apprehensive, but shrugged it off.

"He's not exactly what I would call a 'companion', old man. More like a stalker, or a leech. Either way, I keep trying to get rid of him, but he's latched onto me ever since I reached Canalave City. I'm hoping to shake him after tonight since I no longer require his services," he explained calmly.

"Hey, you still owe me a life debt!" Conway yelled out to him.

Paul grumbled. "Can't I just write out an IOU instead? I'm really not the type you'd want to stake your life on, and I'm getting sick of you enough as it is."

"Like an old married couple…" Brandon muttered under his breath before speaking up. "Well, Byron mentioned that he was tagging along with you when I spoke with him four days ago. I just found it _interesting_ that you found yourself a little friend at last, though you seem to be in denial over the matter…"

"Oh, like you're one to judge!" Paul shouted back in retaliation. "Why do you even care? He's just a little snot of a loser, anyway."

"Gee, I'm sitting right next to you," Conway muttered.

Paul nodded to Conway and feigned a smile, getting back at him for earlier. "I know."

"I was just wondering, kid, you didn't stop by the Canalave Library while you were in the city, did you?" Brandon asked, seemingly completely innocently… but that immediately set off red alerts in the heads of everyone else in the room.

After a brief moment of silence, Paul shook his head. "I went to the city, stopped by the Pokémon Center for a _very_ brief moment, went straight to the Gym, passed out, and was then transferred to the infirmary where I immediately left to board a ship early the next morning to reach Reggie. I don't think the library was even open during that time of day. So no, I never set foot in there."

"Fair enough," Brandon conceded. Then he looked to Conway. "Now, how about your little friend here?"

Before Conway could answer, Paul cut in. "His business is none of yours, old man."

"Is that so? I think it might be," Brandon mused. "There's a kid I happen to be looking for, you see. He happens to live right here in this city. He checked out a book that I am in dire need of. The only book of its kind and the only copy in the entire world… and I thankfully managed to get some information out of the librarian before I left Canalave City."

Paul gave his father an incredulous look while Conway nervously gulped. On second thought, he figured it might be best if he did keep quiet and let Paul do the talking, now that it known that it was _him_ whom Brandon had been inadvertently chasing after throughout Sinnoh. Knowing that now, it took a great deal of willpower for Conway to not faint at that moment.

"Additionally, the librarian told me the boy had dark green hair and wore glasses and went by the name of… _Conway_."

Paul _immediately_ shot a glare to Conway to not make a sudden reaction to Brandon's descriptions, his delivery of which was specifically meant to make any suspect squeal. He made sure to make it discreet, however, as he knew his father had two eyes and the other was watching the son as much as the first was watching the prime suspect.

"F-funny coincidence, that," Conway remarked at last, laughing nervously. "Too bad that's not my name! Ahaha! Haa... ha…"

Brandon was not in the mood for this game, however. "You were introducing yourself to me, as I recall. Your name certainly starts with a 'C', the way you were pronouncing it."

"Or hypothetically a 'K'," Conway pointed out. "But no, you're right, it's a C. Still, I'm not Conway. I'm… uh…" He tried not to take _too_ long making up a name, as every second made him look more and more like a liar. "Colin…!"

If 'Colin' was going to be that committed to the lie, Brandon figured to humor him and strike for a weak point when one made itself present.

"Very well, then… 'Colin'. May I ask you some things, without the interruption of my disrespectful offspring?"

"Uh…" Conway looked to Paul, looking uncertain of himself, but Paul just shrugged it off, in a way trying to silently remind him that he no longer has the thing Brandon is looking for on hand anyway, which essentially put Conway in the clear. "Sure, why not?"

"Very well, then. Colin, is Veilstone City your City of origin?" Brandon asked, calmly and casually.

Conway wasn't sure what this had to do with anything since it wouldn't prove anything one way or the other, but he shrugged. "Actually, it is. On the southern end of the city, though."

This was a surprise for Paul, though. "It _is?_"

Conway smiled with amusement. "Whoops. Guess I forgot to tell you, huh? Small world, isn't it?"

"Clearly, it is," Brandon agreed. "Then, Colin. Did _you_ enter the Canalave Library at any point during your stay at Canalave City?"

Conway bit at his lip, knowing somehow that answering "yes" was going to land him into a trap. At the same time, he had a similar feeling about the "no" option as well. Ultimately, he went with his gut feeling. "Yes, I did, but I go there all the time. This was no special occasion."

Brandon nodded. "I see, then. I was talking to Byron about my boy's Gym Battle earlier and one of the first things he mentioned was you. To be mentioned first before anything about the battle itself must mean you did something noteworthy, Conway, so what was is that you did for my son's Gym Battle?"

"Oh, that!" Conway laughed that off. "It wasn't anything special, really, I was just refereeing."

Then he paused. Everyone stared at him, except for Brandon. He let out a wicked grin. Paul groaned and slammed his palm against his forehead as Conway's face turned pale as the poor adolescent covered his mouth.

"HAH! I knew it!" Brandon shouted, pointing directly at the misfortunate bespectacled one. "You _are_ Conway! You little rat! Thought you could sneak by the Pyramid King, didn't you?!"

"I'm sorry!!" He wailed. "Please, don't hurt me!" He offered his bag as a peace offering. "Here, take whatever you want! Just please don't call my mom!!"

As Conway continued to bawl, Brandon raised an eyebrow strangely as he fished through the bag. He did indeed find a couple of books… but not the one he was looking for. "Kid… you don't have what I'm looking for." He closed Conway's bag and tossed it back to him, but Conway was still in the midst of crying his eyes out, and thus the bag fell flat on the floor. There was no questioning the nature of this young man's character now, Brandon knew. He sounded legitimately emotionally scarred.

With that, he looked to Prime Suspect #2: Paul. "Okay, cough it up. I know you have it."

"Hm?" Paul pretended he wasn't listening. "I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about."

"You know _exactly_ what I'm talking about," Brandon accused. "Why else would you be so convinced that I would never be able to find Regigigas if you didn't have the one and only book yourself?"

Paul only smirked back at his father. "How are you so sure I have it on me and I didn't just burn it or throw it into the ocean or throw it in a trashcan somewhere instead?"

"Because if you did that and I never managed to actually find Regigigas, you'd never have that chance to take that crack at me that you claim you want," Brandon retorted, now standing up and walking to the left side of the bed, past the still-sniffling Conway and straight towards his son.

"What if I've already read it myself?" Paul asked in a hypothetical tone, though he actually had read the book. "Maybe I want to capture it for myself. Maybe I think you have too many of those things in your collection, anyway. Regirock, Registeel, Regice, _Reggie_… what's the harm in sharing just one?"

Brandon glared down at him. "Don't even _joke_ about that nonsense. You don't have the qualifications to capture a Legendary Pokémon. It's _my_ duty and mine alone to capture it, so cut out the childishness and hand over the book already before I lose my patience with you."

Paul looked at his father for a moment before rolling his eyes, opting to stare out the window instead. "Oh, please spare me the great wrath of the Pyramid King. I'm not Conway, you know. I won't break down in tears by- AGH!"

Paul was cut off by abruptly being held up by the scruff of his neck as if he were a baby Skitty. It wasn't nearly as pleasant for a human, but it did more than enough to get Paul kicking and flailing helplessly until he would eventually concede. That's what Brandon's plan was, anyway.

"Put me down!! This is degrading! Do I look like a feline Pokémon to you?!" Paul hollered, trying to release himself, but to no avail. He could not escape the strong grasp of his father.

"You were acting a little 'catty', so perhaps," Brandon replied. "I'll put you down if you give me the book."

Ever-stubborn, however, Paul refused to comply. "Oh, bite me, old man! You've just crossed the line!"

"Funny that you say such a thing, as if you already haven't been on thin ice yourself," Brandon said, a bit more seriously. "But really, I can keep this up as long as I need to."

But now, Reggie had seen enough. "Everyone, stop this right now!"

The others paused to look to Reggie, who was beyond irritated at this point.

"Conway, for goodness' sake, stop your sniveling; the heat's already off you, first of all," Reggie requested.

"O-okay…" He said uneasily. Maylene, who had been stunned with silence by what she had seen, got a box of tissues for Conway to blow his nose with.

"Dad, put Paul _down_ already. Here's the book you're looking for," Reggie said, pulling none other than the Regigigas book out from under his pillow sheet. "He only got this book for my sake, because he was _worried_ about me. But since you're letting me train at my own speed, we don't need to keep it a secret any longer."

"Huh?" Brandon looked over to see that his oldest son was indeed telling the truth. He dropped Paul without even thinking to receive the book, and saw that it was indeed genuine. "This… this is it! This is what I've been looking for…!"

Paul crashed down to the floor meanwhile, landing on his knees. He grunted on impact and glared up at the others. "Yeah, don't worry, I'm _fine_, everyone. Thanks for your concern."

Maylene tsked and shook her head. "Paul, I hate to say this, but you really deserved that."

"Why haven't _you_ left yet?" Paul retorted, standing up. "You're not of relevance to any of this, Maylene."

Reggie glared at his brother. "I happen to agree with Maylene, Paul. Your attitude's completely uncalled for. You know the reason you got me this book was to buy me extra time, and dad's giving it to me anyway. There's no point in keeping the book away from him now."

"You promised me you wouldn't give him that book!" Paul accused, pointing to Reggie. "You just stabbed me in the back the second the old man one-upped me!"

"Excuse me, I never _promised_ you anything," Reggie corrected. "I just said I wasn't going to, under the assumption that dad wasn't going to change the rules on us. He did, so stop being so dramatic."

"You know…" Conway, considerably calmer now, re-entered the conversation. "We _did_ make an agreement that the fate of the book would lie in Reggie's hands, Paul. The second you gave that book to him, I think he's well within his rights to decide where it goes and whom he gives it to, so with all due respect…"

"Conway, you're not helping!" Paul barked back at him. "I've got better things to do than sit here and be singled out by a bunch of losers. I have a _journey_ to finish, so I'll just be on my way now."

Brandon was done admiring the book just in time to notice that his youngest son was about to vacate. "You will sit back down in your seat until the conversation is over, boy. This is the first time in seven years since I've been home. Naturally, I'll have to leave tonight, but I won't stand for you leaving early simply because you're behaving like a petulant child." He looked directly down at Paul with a smirk just then. "By the way, I could not have possibly 'one-upped' you if I was unaware of your intentions with this book in the first place. It's true I suspected that you took it, but I wasn't aware that it was to help your brother. I assumed it was only to spite me."

"Well, _now_ it is," Paul assured, glaring at both his father _and_ brother now. Still, he took his seat, not wanting to end up on another end of his father's disciplinary holds.

"Sorry for lying to you, Brandon," Conway apologized. "If it helps, the two of us have already read through the book. Even it doesn't list a specific area where Regigigas is held, but it strongly insinuates that it resides in the areas surrounding Snowpoint City, so you'll probably want to start there."

This took Brandon by surprise. "You don't say… so it's native to Sinnoh after all." He smiled. "This should be a good time to revisit some of my favorite areas of this region. It's changed quite a bit since I was here last, so I might as well enjoy it while I can. Thank you for the tip."

Conway chuckled nervously and shrugged. "It's the least I can do for deceiving you like that…"

To that, Brandon only laughed. "Don't flatter yourself, kid; I knew you were lying the entire time. I just needed to verify it. All the same, it relieves me that you aren't a nasty boy like my little one over there. That's what I was primarily concerned about: that this book fell in the wrong hands. This is a one-of-a-kind variety, and I couldn't afford to lose it to someone of ill intent."

"I'm sure you'll find Regigigas," Maylene assured with a nod. "All things considered, this was a pretty fortunate event for all of us."

Brandon nodded, looking to Reggie. "So, it _has_ been four days, and aside from your hand, you look perfectly fine, boy. How much longer will you be here for?"

"Actually, I was hoping to kind of get out of here tonight," Reggie explained, optimism present in his tone. "Maylene was about to ask a nurse about that before you came in."

"Hm…" Brandon seemed to be considering something for a moment before smiling and looking to the others. "Let's make it official, then. There's something I'd like to do before I leave for Mt. Coronet."

* * *

After consulting with a nurse, getting the paperwork filled out, and Reggie's Pokéballs out from the care units (not to mention a bit of awkwardness for Reggie getting back into the habit known as "walking" that he hadn't done in four consecutive days now), Brandon, Reggie, Maylene, Conway, and a very reluctant Paul gathered together at the entrance of the hospital lobby.

"Even at my age, I still have much to learn, it seems," Brandon admitted to the others. "Even with a job as demanding as mine, going seven years without setting foot in my own city is a travesty. I will see to it that things improve in the future. I still believe this incident was a message from the heavens, calling out to me to connect with _both_ of my sons with a bit more effort, and I'm sure they would like the same…" He looked to Paul specifically. "Whether they admit it or not."

Paul brushed the comment aside and looked away. "Whatever. One day's not going to make up for seven years of being a deadbeat, old man."

"Perhaps not," Brandon mused. "But it's never too late to start making amends." He then looked to Reggie. "It took a great deal of bravery to be straightforward with your feelings, boy. I only wish you had done so sooner, but doing that and giving me this book when you didn't have to shows me a sense of bravery I haven't seen since… well, since the day your mother first stepped into this city as a child when she moved from Verdanturf Town."

Conway smirked. "Something tells me there's a long story behind that one."

"There is," Brandon affirmed. "But that will be for another time. My boy knows it, though; perhaps he can tell you."

Reggie laughed at that. "There you go, comparing me to mom again…"

Brandon shrugged helplessly. "All I can say is… it's become a habit after all these years. Still, since I'm going to be in hot pursuit of Regigigas for the rest of my trip in Sinnoh, don't think I've forgotten that your birthday is in about a month. Your _eighteenth_ birthday, no less."

"No way," Reggie gasped out. "Y-you're giving me a present early this year…?"

"You've earned it," Brandon replied, holding out a cardboard box. "Admittedly, these are more for your Pokémon than they are for you, but there's more after this. I'd just like you to see these first."

Since Reggie couldn't handle the box with both arms, Brandon set the box on a table for Reggie to open himself. When he opened it, he was amused to find weighted exercise bands of bright and vibrant colors inside.

"These should greatly aid your Pokémon's natural strengths during training," Brandon explained. "But as you can see, they are weighted, so they will slow your Pokémon down as they train. However, they will build up endurance, and therefore become stronger when battling in normal conditions."

He then began to point out to each one individually to describe them. "The one in green is the Power Weight, which will aid your Pokémon's stamina. The purple one decorated with lenses is suitably called the Power Lens and will enhance your Pokémon's non-physical damaging attacks. The red one is the Power Bracer, which will increase the level of your Pokémon's strength. In orange is the Power Belt, made for fortifying a Pokémon's defenses. Then there's the Power Band, in yellow, which builds up your Pokémon's resistance to special attacks, and finally, in blue is the Power Anklet. It slows the Pokémon down, but it will become much faster after enough training."

Reggie was beyond flattered when he looked at them all. "I… I don't know what to say…"

Maylene looked excited. "Hey, I think I remember using something like these! I believe some of the trainers at Veilstone Gym are still using them! But I remember Lucario and I did some intensive training a long time ago with weights. They really made a difference!"

"You have a Lucario now, do you?" Brandon asked Maylene, interested. "The same baby Riolu you received from your parents, I presume?"

"The one and the same!" Maylene affirmed, smiling. "We'll both work hard and make sure Reggie's fully prepared to battle you when the time is right."

Brandon nodded, certain that he could trust the new Gym Leader. "I'm sure you will. But those are for the Pokémon. I have one more birthday present for you, boy."

Reggie turned around, curious again. "Really, dad, it isn't necessary…"

"After seven years, I believe it is," Brandon said adamantly. This time, he dug around in his own side-pocket and pulled out something that looked like what an archaeologist such as Brandon would dig up, but at the same time, it was oddly dainty and feminine… either way, it was aged, fragile, yet well-protected. "And I know for certain your mother would want you to have this, because it used to belong to her."

"That's…" Reggie's eyes widened, as he recognized it instantly. "Mom's Shell Bell… I thought it was lost…!"

It was indeed a Shell Bell, but something of a customized one, as it was held together by a string of small pearls and the shells composing of the necklace seemed to sparkle. In the middle of the front shell was a strategically-placed gem that resembled a diamond, somewhat.

"I believe I neglected to tell you, though, that I was the one who actually made this," Brandon mentioned as he carefully laid the Shell Bell into Reggie's palm. Reggie himself stared deeply into his mother's necklace, but did not tune out his father's words.

"You made this…?" He asked quietly. "But… how…?"

Brandon smirked. "This Shell Bell is a bit older than you initially thought. I was about your age when I made it, actually. I went to Hoenn on my own one day and traveled to the Shoal Caves in order to collect the necessary amounts of Shoal Shells and Shoal Salts to make the basic Shell Bell. I then customized it, keeping your mother's interests in mind. When I finished it and presented it to her, she seemed to prefer it to the customary engagement ring."

Much as he tried to pretend not to, Paul was listening, and he couldn't believe what he was hearing. Reggie didn't know this either, and he found himself short of breath as he looked up to Brandon.

"You're… giving me what was… mom's engagement necklace…?" He asked his father, voice full of emotion, as if he were about to cry.

Brandon, much firmer with his emotions, nodded, but still couldn't help but be elated for his own son's happiness. "Understand that I am giving you that necklace for a reason. You're going to be eighteen soon… and no longer a boy. Time will be passing rapidly for you, so I want you to find a special person to honor with that necklace. Someone you trust… someone you know who will always be there for you. That's what I had in mind when I made this. That's what I wish for you to have in mind when you…"

But Brandon could not even finish his speech before Reggie already made his decision. Brandon's eldest son approached a stunned Maylene and donned her with the necklace. Needless to say, she was speechless.

Brandon himself was at a loss for words for a moment before regathering his thoughts. "Ah-… you're awfully quick to make a decision, aren't you? It isn't wise to be hasty, boy. You're not eighteen _yet_."

Reggie just shook his head and smiled to his father. "Dad… I wouldn't be standing here and talking with you right now if it wasn't for Maylene. She was there for me when no one else was. When you're off in Kanto and Paul's off journeying… she's still there to talk to me, and laugh with me… and understand me, and be there for me when I'm sad. I don't mean to disrespect the meaning of the necklace, dad… but right now, I can't imagine anyone right now who deserves it more than Maylene. Please understand."

Taking that into consideration, Brandon looked to the still-stunned (and now massively-blushing) Maylene, who now seemed to be borderline-hyperventilating as quietly as she could.

"So you _have_ given this thought," Brandon mused. "I suppose I can allow it… for now."

Conway was _immensely_ amused with this turn of events. "Uh-oh… looks like you've got a future in-law, Paul."

Paul looked furious, but Reggie held his hands up to signal the others to calm down. "Now wait just a second…! That's not what I meant! Come on; you know she's too young…"

Conway raised an eyebrow and smirked. "Is that the _only_ reason?"

Reggie grumbled. "Quiet, you. This may have been an engagement necklace to dad, but to me, this is my symbol of gratitude for everything Maylene's done for me that everyone else has fallen through on. And I trust Maylene will take good care of my mom's necklace; I can't think of anyone better to take care of it. She'd probably handle it better than I would, honestly."

"That's the kind of thing I like to hear," Brandon complimented, clapping his hands. "You trust her to care for and respect the necklace above all else. You can alter the meaning if you'd like, boy, but I do hope you'll settle down eventually after we battle."

"After we battle?" Reggie inquired, not understanding. "But… what if I don't win?"

Brandon only smiled as he began to exit the hospital. "Boy, try to focus on being optimistic. That's what we've known and loved you for, anyway. Maylene, I don't believe I need to tell you to keep my kid in line, do I?"

"N-no, sir! I mean Brandon!" She sputtered, as she and the others followed Brandon outside the hospital and into the streets of Veilstone City. By now, the sun had long since set and the moon shined brightly in the sky. "I'm going to protect and respect this necklace no matter what, as well as be there for Reggie, sir! … I-I mean Brandon, geez!" Maylene flailed, trying her best not to lose her cool in front of the others.

Upon seeing this, Brandon could not resist laughing. He only wished Andrea could witness all of this. "It felt nice to do this… it was long overdue." He walked to Reggie and patted him on the shoulder. "Again, I cannot express how grateful I am that you made it out of this alive. Believe it when I say this will change things in the near future, and… when you are _ready_, I hope to see you soon."

In an unexpected move, Reggie hugged his father. Brandon was taken aback by this and somehow could not bring himself to return the hug, but smiled nonetheless. "… But as always, you're still too soft, boy."

Hearing that, Reggie let go and immediately looked embarrassed. "Well, I… yeah. I hope to see you soon, dad… good luck on finding Regigigas."

Brandon happily nodded to his eldest son before making a short stroll to his young one, who had kept his mouth shut for quite a while now.

"Any last words, kid?" Brandon asked Paul in a demeaning tone. "I might not be so merciful the next time we cross paths."

"It's going to be soon," Paul promised in a scathing tone. "We're basically going the same way. You for Regigigas; myself for a Gym Battle. It's inevitable. But I'll be coming prepared. Don't be surprised when I completely annihilate you."

To that threat, Brandon grinned. "Sounds like fun. I'll see you there." He then distanced himself from the others and waved. "I'll be going now, then. All things considered, this was a fine reunion. Best of luck to all of you."

Barring Paul, everyone waved and bid their farewells to Brandon as he began to walk off and faded in the distance.

"What a day," Reggie said, now sounding exhausted. "After four days of hospital fluids, I think I'm ready for a big dinner at home. How about you, Maylene?"

Maylene couldn't help but blush, but nodded in agreement. "Your body must be deprived of nutrients, Reggie! If we're to get you back in top shape for training, we'll have to get you well fed!"

"Then stop talking about it and let's go home already," Paul complained. "I might as well come, too. I wasn't aware it was this late…"

But just then, Reggie turned towards Paul with a glare. "Uh… I don't think so, bro."

There was an uncomfortable silence following that statement as Paul stared at his now-angered older brother. "_What_ did you just say to me…?"

"That attitude you had, you throwing a fit over absolutely _nothing_…? Do I need to remind you about that?" Reggie stated, very sternly. "I couldn't believe you would be so cruel and selfish. I've been through enough for one day, Paul, so I can do without your blatant disrespect for the people I hold dear to me." He clearly was referring to Maylene now. "Conway, I hate to trouble you, but can Paul stay over at your place for tonight? I think he just needs to get this out of his system, and you seem to balance him out well enough."

Conway was surprised at first to be offered to have Paul as a sleepover guest in his own home, but he quickly nodded and acted casual about it. "Not a problem, Reggie! I've got a bunk bed in my room and everything suitable for such an occasion."

Paul was aghast at this. "You can't be serious. You're kicking me out?!"

"Just for tonight," Reggie clarified. "Think things over for a bit and realize what a complete _jerk_ you've been tonight, Paul. It's not like I'm leaving you out on the streets or anything. Conway will take good care of you; I'm sure."

"He's right, Paul," Conway concurred. "Besides, it'll be fun. Haven't you ever been curious about what it's like at Casa Conway?"

Paul just groaned and grasped at his hair. "_No_, I haven't…"

Reggie rolled his eyes and sighed. "Get over it, okay? It's just for one night. I need time to clear out my head, and that'll be hard to do with you around. I'll see you two tomorrow, anyway. Conway's got a Gym Battle, right?"

"For sure!" Conway agreed with a wink. "I'll be there and I'll bring him with me. Prepare yourself for a battle of epic proportions, Maylene!"

Maylene laughed nervously. "Looks like I'm going to need to clear my mind tonight as well after dinner. You're going to be one fearsome opponent."

"My strategizing shall prevail!" Conway proclaimed. "Come along, Paul! We must concoct the perfect plan… _to win my first gym badge!!_" And excitedly, he dragged Paul by the arm and went down the southern route of the city towards his house. When overly excited, Conway was quite a runner, Paul noted, but he was quick to drag him back and off his feet after the first few minutes.

* * *

"Will you get over yourself already?!" Paul yelled, then continuing to calmly walk the rest of the way to Conway's house as Conway pulled himself up and muttered a few complaints about being knocked over. "It's like you're trying to kidnap me or something…"

Conway smirked. "Well, while I am eager to show you my humble abode, I believe Reggie does seek some quality alone time with the future in-law."

Paul shot Conway an icy glare just then. "Don't even _joke_ about that."

"Okay, then, I'll try the other theory," Conway decided. "You're jealous because _you_ didn't get a birthday present."

To that, Paul just raised an eyebrow at his companion. "Conway, my birthday's more than half a year away. We usually give each other presents on time."

Conway was surprised, for he was certain that at least that theory of his was accurate. "Wait, wait, wait. You mean to say you participate in this kind of thing, too?"

Paul nodded. "It was Reggie's idea… you know, another one of his crazy ideas to 'keep the family together'. Normally I'd call it a worthless tradition, but I have gained something useful from it."

"You don't say…" This impressed Conway. Such a simple tradition, and yet another attempt by Reggie to keep the family as a functioning unit. "What did you gain, exactly?"

"Well…" Paul was hesitant to admit this… "Last year, the old man managed to find something useful for me for my birthday last year. He gave me a Razor Claw. I wasn't exactly certain what to do with it, but in his letter, he suggested that I give it to my Sneasel to boost its power. I did so, and soon after… during night training, my Sneasel evolved into Weavile."

Conway grinned. "See, your dad likes you! He gave you something nice! Why don't you ever do something like that for him?"

"Didn't I tell you I participate already?" Paul asked, purely annoyed. "I gave the old man a Pokémon last year. I'm not sure if he actually uses it, but I was scouting for a strong Pokémon for myself at the time. That was the day I met and captured Chimchar. Moments before I encountered Chimchar, I caught a Ninjask. After comparing the move sets, I kept Chimchar and gave Ninjask to the old man for his birthday."

"Interesting," Conway remarked. "You caught a fully-evolved Pokémon for your dad. Guess that's kind of a nice gesture. I suppose, perhaps, it's because you two are too similar in personality that you just tend to clash whenever you meet…"

Paul looked away and closed his eyes. "I'm getting sick of your theories, Conway."

Just then, Conway's eyes brightened up. "Well, say goodbye to them! We've just hit Casa Conway! Come on in!"

* * *

As Conway shoved Paul into his house, Reggie and Maylene were on the way to Reggie's house. Almost immediately, he asked her who was taking care of his Pokémon in his absence as well as her own, and explained that Connally came in intermittently to care for them until they returned.

"You know, I just realized something…" Maylene said out of nowhere.

Reggie looked to her, wondering what was on her mind. "What is it?"

"Well… you know… I can't help but notice that… not only have I not seen the Battle Pyramid _anywhere_ nearby, but Brandon walked pretty much in the wrong direction when he left us. Didn't you notice that…?"

Reggie thought about it… then he smiled. "The lack of the Battle Pyramid hadn't come to my mind… but I think I know why he went east, rather than west towards Mt. Coronet."

"You know why? Really?" Maylene asked, full of curiosity.

"Yeah…" Reggie was pretty sure about it. "I think he went to see mom first before he leaves the city."

"Oh…" Maylene blushed again at the mention of Reggie's mother as she looked down at the Shell Bell hung around her neck. "You sound like you know that for sure…" And in a way, Reggie's calm certainty was making her uncomfortable. She hadn't forgotten Reggie's initial rage when he first woke up, and it seemed that he completely forgot that it ever happened. He was relatively normal now…

She wondered if perhaps he just needed a few days of rest to calm his mind… or if this was just the calm before the storm. Maylene suspected this because she'd never once seen Reggie be so assertive towards his cruel, younger brother before. Reggie was more-or-less back to normal, it seemed…

But _something_ had changed in him.

"We'll know for sure tomorrow morning," Reggie told Maylene, holding her hand rather suddenly. "Dad knows how to mark the territories he's been to… and I can already see them."

Maylene's heart skipped a beat. "S-see what…?"

"Four beautiful magnolias."

* * *

**( TBC )**


	8. Super SmashBrawlin' Maylene!

**( Notes:**

**So... DP128 and 129 have come and gone. The theory was not proven, but I believe it was not disproved either. I have an interesting plan in how to handle those episodes when I have to adapt them into the story, but that's quite a ways from where we are now! During my self-imposed hiatus of nearly two months, I made blueprints for solid plans with every chapter of this story until Chapter 11, which will be adapting DP118 (which won't be shown in the USA until August, I estimate). I even made a timeline of how these events coincide with the anime; you'll see near the later end of this that most of this chapter occurs between _A Breed Stampede! _(DP106) and _Ancient Family Matters!_ (DP107). There is a minor timeskip close to the end that lands the end of the chapter at _Leading A Stray!_ (DP109). By the way, you'll want a sandwich... or two... or a full-course dinner for this chapter, for it clocked in (on MS Word) at 38,055 words/78 pages. I did not expect to break my own record, seriously. You'll find a lot of scenes that may just seem to be there for flavor/filler, but everything I've written has some relevance to the story, be it present or future (or past). Since I planned all this out so firmly, I refused to cut this chapter in half, so sorry about the long-ness, people! Hopefully you'll just see it as making up for two months of NOTHING...! I pray Chapter 9 is not this long, for it will drive me insane.**

**I'm also immensely grateful for all the reviews I've received so far! Really warms my heart (and agitates my ego) to see how much you guys are enjoying this, and hopefully, you'll continue to enjoy it in spite of this godawfully huge chapter. It's interesting to see that so many people over the world are reading (or looking at for two seconds before they're like "Back button!") this fic! Feel free to keep sending in your thoughts after this chapter as well, but only once your eyes stop bleeding due to excessive reading. Like I said, enjoy!

* * *

  
**

It was beyond Paul why he felt such overwhelming apprehension and contempt over something as minor as spending the night at someone else's house. As a trainer who traversed the entire regions of Kanto, Johto, and Hoenn, he'd already spent the last few years far away from home and therefore had no choice but to spend many nights in unfamiliar places. However, places like Pokémon Centers and hotels were not quite analogous to spending a night at another trainer's residence; especially if said trainer was Conway.

Even after having his life saved by the studious freelancer – not to mention being assisted by him numerous times out of the goodness of his own heart after the fact – Paul still found Conway to be a rather shady character. For such an eccentric young man, Paul wondered just what kind of home Conway had and how he lived his everyday life. Even more importantly, Paul wondered if he would be able to last a full night under Conway's roof and make it through the next morning with his sanity intact.

Unafraid to stereotype, Paul fully expected Conway's house to be some sort of dark and filthy hovel filled to the brim with useless junk stacked up against the walls and scattered all over the floor.

Because of this, Paul was more than a little startled as his companion shoved him through the front door and into the hallway… and as Paul stumbled into Conway's home, the very first thing he noticed was the sound made as his heels hit the floor: a clear, distinct clack-clack-clack with every step made. It became apparent that the floors of the hallway were made up of large tiles of solid, cream-colored marble.

Flooring like that didn't come cheap.

After registering this, Paul looked up to see that as far as the hallway was concerned, it went against every stereotypical trait associated with the home of a shut-in geek (as Paul would consider Conway). There was nary a crack anywhere as far as he could tell, and the cathedral-style walls allowed for a very high ceiling. Elegant pictures were hung neatly on the walls, nice and evenly, though strangely all of them seemed to depict famous pieces of classical art with no trace of a family portrait anywhere. There were side tables along the walls with expensive-looking vases and small statues sitting upon them, and many plants adorned the corners. A large, ornate chandelier of glass hung over the boys and provided light for the entire area.

The most notable detail of the hallway was the large, towering grandfather clock against the wall which Paul passed by. Like everything else in the hallway, Paul knew the clock must have been rather pricey as well.

After he closed the front door, Conway took notice to Paul's silence and smirked. "So, Paul…" He finally said; amusement present in his tone. "I can't help but notice that you seem to be at a loss for words."

Hearing Conway's voice snapped Paul back into reality. Unfortunately for Paul, though, he didn't think to cover up his surprised expression before facing his traveling companion. "You… have a big house," he muttered. "It wasn't easy to tell that from the outside."

"Ah, yes," Conway said in agreement, though his smug smile had not yet faded. "Appearances can be deceiving, indeed. But from a logical standpoint, that's a good thing. Large houses that reflect the same level of beauty and value inside and out are always the ones that attract the burglars, wouldn't you agree? A house that is rich on the inside and ordinary middle-class on the outside isn't nearly as susceptible."

Reluctantly, Paul nodded. "That's a strategy worth utilizing. Your parents at least have commendable preservation tactics." He locked eyes with Conway as he proceeded to cut straight to the chase: "So you're rich, I take it."

To that, Conway simply shrugged. "Eh, I guess you can say that. We're not nearly the richest family in the city, but maybe for this particular block. I never was big on social status, though. It's not that big a deal."

"Obviously," Paul said under his breath. "You never came off like a millionaire to me, and if you really are as rich as you seem to be, it's a wonder why you don't try to bring that up around the women you pursue. In a shallow society like ours, almost anyone would be willing to deal with your insufferable personality if they knew you were loaded."

As talented as Conway was in dealing with Paul's sour attitude, he couldn't help but take a little offense to that. "Don't talk like I'm some kind of playboy, Paul! I only have my eyes on one beautiful young lady at present and I intend to keep it that way. Besides, I'm not one who wants to be used for my monetary value," he pointed out. "I'd like to win over Dawn with my pure and honest sentiments, and I want her to like me for who I am rather than what I'm worth. When it comes to love, it's never worth it to take the easy way out."

Paul was now regretting spouting off his opinions on this matter, as the last thing he wanted at this point was to hear corny, moralistic preaching from a guy he could barely tolerate. If nothing else, Conway at least was more a fan of logic than blind optimism and faith. So while it wasn't much, Paul could better stomach a conversation with Conway than with Ash.

"You've got your work cut out for you, then," Paul responded calmly, apparently not caring for Conway's resolve to do things the right way. "On your own merits, you're never going to get what you want because no one likes you for who you are. You realize that, right?"

Conway sighed as he gently let his carryon bag slide off his shoulder and to the floor. "Guess we'll just have to agree to disagree on this one, Paul…" Though he sounded depressed and/or exasperated with Paul's attitude, he quickly smiled to his guest afterwards. "So, how about I show you the rest of the house, hm?"

Paul blinked, as for a moment he was curious about the disappearance of Conway's ability to be completely unfazed by his scathing words. Still, he was up for a change of scenery and was ready to get himself comfortable. The sooner he got to bed, the sooner he'd wake up in the morning and be out of this strange place. "If you really want to, I guess…" He said with uncertainty. "It's quiet in here, though… do your parents go to bed early or what?"

After briefly looking to the clock, Conway smiled. "Au contraire, they might not even be home from work yet. Guess it wouldn't hurt to be sure, though. Maybe they'll take interest in the fact that I'm hosting a sleepover tonight…"

"Not home yet…?" Paul looked to the clock to see just what time it was: nearly 9:00. "It's… _late_. What kinds of jobs require people to work these kinds of hours?"

"Eh, you could say their occupations are rather demanding," Conway vaguely noted. "My mom's a pharmacy technician and my dad works at our city's fine laboratory. True, most of their coworkers don't work _this_ late, but my parents are notorious overachievers. I guess you could say all the overtime they've put into each week really 'pays off', because a lot of that extra money they earn goes into making this place look all ritzy."

After hearing that, Paul looked slightly disgusted. "Sounds like they care about their social standing a lot more than you do."

"I'll give you that one," Conway conceded. "They'd have to hold their reputation in high regard to bury themselves in their work every single day." He sighed and walked past Paul towards the living room. "Maybe tonight's different… we'll see here in a minute." Conway looked around before suddenly raising his voice. "Franny…! I'm home!"

Paul couldn't see it, but he heard a female voice coming from the room Conway had entered.

"Oh, what a pleasant surprise… _not_. Didn't you say you would be gone for a few weeks before you left? One week isn't considered 'a few', Connie."

"Would you please stop with that already?!" Conway barked out, clearly agitated. Paul wasn't sure if he wanted to follow Conway into the living room to see what exactly was going on, but he couldn't deny that his curiosity had been piqued now. "Even setting aside the fact that you're seventeen and still calling me names, that's a _girl's_ name and you know it! When are you going to realize it stopped being funny after-… well, it wasn't even funny to begin with! Can you _please_ do me a favor and try to be mature for tonight, at least?"

"Sounds like more trouble than it's worth," the female voice, apparently "Franny's", replied. "You still haven't explained yourself, by the way. I honestly hoped to have at least one more week of freedom from you."

Conway grumbled at first, but managed to calm himself enough to give the requested explanation. "Something unexpected came up while I was on the way to Canalave City," he said. "A strange twist of fate allowed me to reunite with an old friend of mine and I've been traveling with him ever since. He comes from Veilstone City too, you see."

"Another one of your imaginary friends. I see," Franny noted, sounding bored and unconvinced with the story.

After a disgruntled growl, Paul could hear Conway stomping his foot against the living room floor. "He's completely and totally a nonfictional human being, Franny! He fell ill while we were at Canalave and then there was a family emergency he needed to come back here to take care of, and since he was sick and had nobody else to take care of him, I offered. _That's_ why I'm home sooner than I expected to be. I guess you're not buying any of that either, are you?"

"Not really," Franny admitted. "Either way, it's a pity I can't just kick you out. You're starting to babble, and you know how much I can't stand that."

To this, Conway sighed. "I just wanted to know if mom and dad happened to be home early for once. They should know that I'm having a guest sleep over for tonight."

"Hah!" Franny sounded amused by this. By now, Paul was inching ever-so closer to the doorway leading to the living room so he could see what this young woman was all about and how she could so effortlessly get under Conway's skin with the simplest of insults. "And Grumpigs can fly. No, they're not home yet, Connie. And don't even think about asking me to make supper for you just because you've only now come back home."

"I know better than to ask you to handle my meals," Conway said snidely; his eyes narrowing as he glared. "Afflict me with food poisoning once, shame on you. Afflict me with it twice, shame on me."

Paul then appeared at the entrance to the living room, finally able to see who Conway was conversing with. Stretched out across a sofa with a book in her hand, Paul spotted a young woman who indeed looked to be about his older brother's age. Her teal hair (very close to the shade of Conway's hair, though a bit darker than his) was tied back into a ponytail with a dull blue ribbon. It was her thick, oblong oval-shaped glasses, however, that undeniably marked her as a relative of Conway's.

Out of nowhere, Paul suddenly remembered something Conway had said to him while the two were on the ship headed towards the Valor Lakefront:

"_Really, consider yourself lucky, Paul… All I know is… I wouldn't mind having an older sibling that held as much love and respect for their family as yours does."_

He never asked Conway what exactly he meant by that incredibly vague statement. But now, it all became very clear to him.

"So you have a sister," Paul acknowledged as he walked over to Conway's side. Conway was slightly startled by this, having briefly forgotten about his guest, but he nodded to Paul while looking slightly uneasy.

"Y-yes," Conway confirmed, gesturing towards his sister. "Paul, this is my sister, Franny." He then glared at his sister. "_Franny_… this is my real-life guest for tonight, Paul."

Upon hearing a new (and unfamiliar) voice entering the conversation, Franny looked up from her book to see that her brother was telling the truth: for the first time ever, Conway had actually brought home a companion he didn't fabricate from his own imagination. Her book slipped out of her grasp and fell onto her lap as she gaped at the scene. Conway simply couldn't help but smirk at her shock and surprise. Even without paying much attention, Paul could feel the strong sense of animosity between the two siblings… and to him, he found it a little interesting, as this was nothing like anything he ever felt before, even when he and Reggie had their disagreements.

"I suppose… there's a first time for everything," Franny begrudgingly admitted. "It certainly took you long enough, Connie. What did you do, bribe him?"

Before Conway could respond, Paul decided to clear things up. "Conway told me nothing about how rich his family is; I had no idea that you all were loaded until I stepped into the house."

And "loaded" was an appropriate word for Conway's family, as even the living room was custom designed to represent the epitome of comfortable modern living. Even more decorations adorned the walls of this room, and of course, no upper-class living room was complete without a fireplace. As far as Paul could see, the house was spick-and-span – virtually flawless. He wondered if they could actually afford a maid to keep this house consistently tidy.

"Hold on," Franny interrupted, now scrutinizing Paul. She leaned over and adjusted her glasses to get a better look at Conway's young companion. "You… look familiar."

Paul grunted and rolled his eyes; like he hadn't heard _that_ line before from a total stranger. "I can't imagine how," he said in a sarcastic manner. "Conway, have you told her about me?"

"Obviously not," Conway replied. "Otherwise I wouldn't have bothered introducing you." He then looked to his sister. "Franny, this is who I battled against in the Tag Battle Tournament that took place in Hearthome City a few months ago."

Franny shook her head. "I _know_ that. I was the only one watching that pathetic battle on TV, remember? I knew you were doomed the second you were partnered with a girl."

Paul couldn't help but smirk at this… because he fully agreed with Franny. "It's true that he wasn't a very formidable competitor. That girl completely blinded him."

By now, Conway's face was turning red with embarrassment and shame. "It wasn't a complete shut-out battle, Paul! Stop giving her ammunition against me!" He crossed his arms, now appearing to be grumpy over the ordeal. "We've established that Paul's the guy I battled with on TV. Is that good enough for you, Franny?"

Franny stared at Paul again, which made him feel a bit uncomfortable this time. "So this is Paul of Veilstone City… he has an older brother who runs the breeding center in our city, correct?"

"Well… yes," Paul answered, a little put-off by her observational skills that came even more quickly to her than Conway's. "Looks like you've done your homework."

"I have," Franny curtly responded with a nod. "So you are indeed _that_ Paul… the son of Kanto's most powerful Frontier Brain."

After the frustrating and humiliating ordeals Paul had just gone through with the unexpected reunion with Brandon not more than an hour ago, the last thing he wanted to do was talk about the man who picked him up by the scruff of his neck.

Conway could sense the anger emanating from Paul just by the mere mention of his father. As he desired to avoid another conflict, he stepped back into the conversation. "You would be right, Franny! But Paul _really_ doesn't like talking about that particular subject, so how about we just leave it at that, okay…?"

"Huh…?" Paul was surprised at Conway's actions. He looked to his slightly-older companion, clearly confused, but Conway simply smiled back at him, albeit uneasily.

"A touchy subject, I see," Franny acknowledged. "Well, Connie, you managed to wrangle a real person into our home; a rather status-noteworthy one, at that. Mildly impressive, at least." She picked up her book and resumed reading it… but it seemed to be rather inappropriate to do so right in the middle of a conversation. At least, Paul thought so. Conway seemed to take offense to it as well, as he glared at Franny again.

"Just 'mildly', huh?" Conway asked, sounding somewhat hurt now. Paul's curiosity was aroused once more; he'd never heard Conway sound like this before. "N-not that I care what you think or anything, of course! It's always a waste of time trying to talk to you because nothing's ever good enough in your eyes!"

Franny let out an aggravated sigh as she glared intensely at Conway past her book. "You've officially hit the limit for today, Connie. You're talking nonsense now, and you know I can't stand that. I'd be surprised if mom and dad even realized you've come back home early, to be perfectly honest. Just be about your way; spend time with your real-life playmate and leave me be. This conversation is _over_."

To be shut out so efficiently… Paul was a little impressed. He wondered why _he_ couldn't ward away people like this.

Conway, however, wasn't finished yet. "But Franny, you're not even-"

"I believe I said the conversation has _ended_, little brother," Franny interrupted, speaking loudly over Conway to drown out his voice and bring him to full attention. "Vacate the area; there's a reason why you have your own room, idiot."

Regardless of whether or not Conway considered himself finished… he certainly was now; Franny had decided that for him. By now, he knew how this game was played. He couldn't hide the upset look on his face, much as he hated to reveal it to Paul. Still, with great restraint, he was able to keep himself from having an emotional outburst and simply whirled around to exit the living room. "Fine! Be that way!"

He stomped his way back into the hall. Paul briskly followed, not needing to be told to come along. As Conway made his distance from the living room, Paul caught up with Conway. He pretended not to care too much about this debacle, but couldn't help being curious. "So… what was that all about?"

Conway then stopped and leaned his back against the wall. After brushing the hair out of his face, he folded his arms and opted to look at the floor rather than directly at Paul. He was reluctant to say anything at first, but then remembered how nosy he'd been about Paul's family earlier on. Conway just didn't expect to have karma bite him back this soon.

"You're really lucky to have Reggie, Paul," Conway said; his voice strained and full of envy. "You see why now, don't you…?"

"What, just because we don't fight as much?" Paul asked, slightly offended by the assumption. "It's not like we don't fight at all, you know. You just saw us fight today. The reason I have to stay with you tonight is because of us not getting along. All brothers and sisters have their spats; it's not unnatural. You're being melodramatic."

Conway shook his head. "That's not what I meant. I know you two don't have a perfect relationship or anything… but at least you two still love and care about each other. You can't deny that, Paul."

Paul looked a little skeptical about where this was going. Still, he knew Conway was right; there was no point in wasting time trying to deny what they both knew was true. "So what _do_ you mean? Are you saying you don't love or care about your sister at all?"

"Why should I?" Conway asked him. "You just saw it; she couldn't care less about me! Franny only allows maybe five minutes maximum for me to even talk to her every day… and she's the only one who's home all day! You're the first person I've ever brought home to spend the night, Paul… and she barely even noticed!"

Paul shrugged. "So she's self-absorbed. But unlike me, you actually have parents who can sort this out. Haven't you tried taking up the matter with them?"

"I'd be fortunate if they even got my name right whenever they acknowledge me," Conway complained, now looking at Paul. "Because Franny's right about that, too; they probably won't even notice that I've returned, much less brought over a guest for tonight. Trying to get them to actually solve an issue for me would require some sort of miracle occurrence."

This completely bewildered Paul. "Your parents don't recognize you? How is that even _possible?_"

"I wish I had a valid answer for that," Conway bemoaned. "My best guess is they're so consumed with their jobs during the day and each other at night that they've forgotten to make time for parenting. Makes me wonder how Franny and I survived our infant years, really… they must've hired a lot of babysitters. Still, after what I've witnessed today, Paul… I almost wish I had a dad like yours."

"Excuse me?" Paul wasn't sure he heard that right, but the initial statement drew an intense glare out of him. "You want a dad like _my_ old man? Are you even listening to yourself?!"

Conway knew he would have to explain himself for this one… "I mean it, Paul. Brandon actually acknowledges you and Reggie. He clearly thinks about you two a lot… he may be a little stiff and he's definitely intimidating, but he wants the best for you two and it must be one heck of a sacrifice to force himself to stay in Kanto just to be able to support his family." He then smiled to Paul. "More than anything, he just seems to have been a little misunderstood. It looks like he at least made a huge breakthrough with Reggie tonight."

"Listen, one night _does not_ make up for the seven years that he's been completely absent in our lives!" Paul shouted back, furious at this point. "Don't act like you know everything about my family situation, because you have _no idea!_"

"Neither do you, actually," Conway pointed out. "A lot of your family issues stem from the fact that your mother died well before her time. All three of you have made that apparent: Reggie wants a Brave Symbol to distinguish himself from her, Brandon has a hard time letting go of her which causes him to run away from the situation, and you don't even know who she is."

Paul growled; he was _not_ looking forward to a whole night of talking about his particular subject. "Look, you can't compare our families because they're nothing alike. My brother dotes on me too much while your sister apparently hates your guts; I virtually have no parents and you have both of yours. We're completely different and you can't possibly understand me!"

"I might as well not even have parents," Conway suddenly said, which intrigued Paul. "Sure, they're both still alive… and they come home every day, but they're a total non-presence in this house. They hardly listen to Franny and they completely tune me out. They don't act like parents at all, you know? They didn't even watch the Tag Battle Tournament. I reminded them about it constantly, but only Franny watched me on TV. Even then, Franny had nothing but criticism for me even though I was a finalist."

Paul turned around, facing away from Conway. "It's pointless to debate about this; you're just a rich, spoiled brat who's starved for attention. I was going to try and stomach spending yet another night with you, Conway, but this is too much. Where's your phone? I'm getting a hotel room."

"W-wait, no!" Conway rushed forward and grabbed Paul by the shoulders. "Look, there's no need to resort to that! If it'll get you to stay, we can stay off the family topic for the rest of the night, I swear!"

It was very hard for Paul to buy this. He wondered why he hadn't thought to ditch Conway and get a hotel room in the first place; it would've been much easier to do so while they were still outside. Paul decided to blame Conway's nosiness that brought about an engrossing conversation while the two were on the way to his house. But Paul thought that perhaps all hope was not lost yet.

"Conway, you know as well as I do that I don't want to be here," Paul reminded his desperate companion. "I couldn't care less about your family situation and it would be much more beneficial for all of us if you just let me spend the rest of the night in a hotel in peace."

Unfortunately for Paul, Conway refused to let go of him and he continued to look panicked and desperate. "Please, Paul, let me make this up to you! Reggie specifically wanted me to be with you tonight, and if nothing else, I don't want to disrespect his wishes especially after he just got out of the hospital! Wouldn't _you_ feel bad disrespecting your big brother's wishes…?"

Paul shook his head, for that was an easy question to answer. "He backstabbed me, if you recall. After all the trouble I went through to keep that book out of the old man's hands, what does Reggie do? He forks it over right to the person I went out of my way to keep that book away from. _He's_ the disrespectful one."

"Oh, Paul…" Conway sighed out, unable to hide his exasperation over the fact that Paul was still being ridiculously self-centered about that particular situation. "I'm sure you two can sort things out in the morning. But for now, you need to relax and get all of this off your mind. I know my family leaves a lot to be desired, but on the positive side, I can tune them out just as easily as they tune me out. You'll find this house a much better place to relax in than some crummy hotel room."

Paul glared at the slightly-older trainer. "And how exactly do you plan to keep me here?"

"Hm…" The lenses of Conway's glasses shined as he pondered that briefly. He then smirked. "Just how much money do you have left, Paul?"

That was actually a good question, and Paul paused himself before giving an answer… because he honestly didn't know. He'd been journeying for so long since the last time Reggie gave him spending money, and Paul knew he was getting very close to running on empty at this point… especially after all of those lemonades that he purchased on the ship that he needed in order to down his medicine while he was sick.

Conway continued to smirk as Paul brought out his wallet and fished through it, trying to count what little he had remaining of his own funds.

"Twenty…" Paul muttered; his eyes focused on the inside of his wallet as he glared. He certainly was running low on money. Conway's knowing smile told Paul he had no way to reason himself out of this one.

"Just twenty dollars?" Conway mused, chuckling to himself. "That isn't even enough money for the cheapest room in Veilstone's _motel_," he pointed out, which Paul was well aware of. Things only got worse when Paul's stomach grumbled quite loudly out of nowhere. It took a great deal of restraint for Conway not to laugh at that while Paul resisted a blush and covered his stomach with his hands.

"I almost forgot; we haven't eaten since we disembarked hours ago at Lake Valor!" Conway exclaimed. "Goodness, no wonder I'm so grumpy. Paul, you can't stay in a hotel with that little money anyway. You might as well stay here where it's not only comfortable, but you'll also have the benefit of a home-cooked meal that'll completely be on the house. You know you can't get that even at the totally-free Pokémon Center."

Paul sighed; try as he might, it seemed he couldn't logically get himself out of Conway's house tonight after all. A cheap, nasty room wouldn't have put him at ease, and he couldn't deny that he was borderline-starving. Since he was denied in his own home, it looked like Conway was the only viable option he had.

"Guess I have no choice," Paul admitted, much as he hated doing so out loud. "Just try to be a little more bearable than you usually are, alright?"

"I'll do my best!" Conway assured. "And once we've eaten, you're more than welcome to use my shower to wash up before we go to bed."

Paul shrugged off Conway's generosity as they both made their way towards the kitchen. "As long as you keep your distance from the bathroom while I'm in there, then-…" He paused. Something didn't sound right just then. "What do you mean by _your_ shower?"

For a moment, Conway wasn't sure what Paul was asking, but then laughed a bit when he realized what his companion meant. "Oh, I guess I didn't tell you! This house has three bathrooms. My parents have the master bathroom, Franny has her own bathroom, and I've got my own as well."

Such a thing was well beyond Paul's imagination: individualized bathrooms for every member of the family. Not that it was a big deal that he and Reggie shared one or anything, and there was certainly no need for more than one in their family anyway… the concept in itself seemed superfluous to the callous trainer.

Conway took interest to Paul's shocked expression and broke the silence. "What, is that an alien concept to you or something? Don't be too jealous, Paul; my bathroom's the smallest of the three."

Paul shook his head, trying to get himself back into reality. "You're still… ridiculously rich, is all."

The pair had entered the kitchen by this point. Conway headed for the refrigerator to see what sort of options they had for dinner. "It's sort of late to be starting dinner, I know," Conway admitted to Paul. "But things turn out that way sometimes. Besides, while we're in here, I might as well start up something for my folks, too. They ought to be coming home soon. Is there anything in particular you feel like having?"

"Uh…" Paul was uncertain what exactly was the norm for rich-people cuisine. He felt he should ask, first. "Just so we're clear, you're not the type who eats, like… caviar and escargot, right?"

"Man, you sure don't hesitate to stereotype, do you?" Conway asked him amusedly. "I personally refuse to consider such things legitimate food, so no, I don't eat it. My family really doesn't, either, but sometimes we break it out during parties or other social gatherings, since some of mom and dad's friends partake in it, including Uncle Damon and Aunt Janet."

Paul leaned against the counter as he watched Conway search for a decent meal in the fridge. "Your extended family is rich, too?"

Conway nodded, though he was more focused on finding food than making creepy gestures at Paul as he usually did. "Not much of a stretch, right? Both Uncle Damon and my dad were big on scientific research, so they both have similar jobs, though they don't work at the same place. Still, they make decent money, which is a good thing, since they'll be my ticket to ultimate freedom in the near future. So, does beef stir-fry sound good for you, Paul?"

Paul blinked; Conway certainly had a thing for bringing up an interesting point and then following up with a completely unrelated casual remark, as if he were trying to change the subject before it even got started. "That'll be fine… but how does your uncle's occupation equal to your 'ultimate freedom', whatever that is?"

"Oh, right!" Conway recalled, laughing it off as he took the necessary ingredients for the stir-fry out of the fridge and placed them on the counter. "Well, it's indirectly giving me freedom. See, my uncle, aunt, and cousin all work at the same place. I'm not sure where exactly they work, but they say it's related to the government, so they're not at liberty to tell us much about what they do since all of their work involves confidential information. I'll be getting freedom from Franny soon, since my cousin Sloan is planning to take her on as an intern. When that happens, she'll finally be out of this house and out of my hair for good."

"I see," Paul murmured, recalling that Franny was indeed the same age as Reggie, and therefore on the verge of becoming an adult herself. He figured this internship would be her way out into the world, on her own, and out of her parents' house. "So she's just biding her time until she turns eighteen?"

Conway shook his head, now beginning the process of chopping up the ingredients to throw into the pan on the stovetop. "Actually, she could be recruited at any time. Sloan says it's just a matter of when an opening pops up; he said he'd take her in as soon as the time is right. He even said when I'm old enough, he could get me a job over there as well, but I'm not sure if I'll actually take up the offer. Naturally, I'm rather wary of working with my sister, even though Sloan's pretty awesome."

"So there's a member of your family you actually like," Paul noted, watching Conway do all of the work for the dinner. "At least you have that much. No one in my family is likable."

"Oh, you don't know that for sure!" Conway chimed in, looking over to Paul. "Your mom might've been a really nice lady. She must have been if Reggie takes after her, at least. Say, would you like to give me a hand here?" He gestured to the dinner he was making. "Stir-fry will probably be enough for us, but as hard as mom and dad work, they'll probably want a side-dish to go with this."

Paul raised an eyebrow at Conway before stepping over to examine his work. "I suppose… what is it you want me to do?"

"I'm thinking they'll want a salad along with this, so can you get the vegetables out of the fridge?" Conway requested. "Then it's really up to you whether you'd like to make the salad or if you'd like to finish up the stir-fry."

Paul froze momentarily before making a decision. "… Since you're already well into that stir-fry, I guess I can… make the salad." He sounded oddly uncertain about this, however, and Conway was quick to take notice to the hesitating as he watched his guest gather vegetables from the refrigerator, taking special notice to the mildly-confused look on his face.

"You sure you can do this, Paul?" Conway asked him sincerely. "You look a little tense."

The immediate reaction was an intense glare from Paul as he set the vegetables on the counter. "I'm absolutely fine!" After getting a bowl and a knife, he began to slice a cucumber.

"Um…" Conway was slightly nervous to ask what was suddenly bothering Paul, but felt the need to point something out. "Paul, maybe you should put the lettuce in the bowl first…?"

It seemed so obvious, yet Paul looked over to the untouched head of lettuce and realized that was probably what he should have started with. "F-fine. Just shut up, Conway." He began to tear off the lettuce and throw it into the bowl, but again, Conway noticed that Paul was doing so in a manner that was telling him that this was Paul's first time handling a salad.

Even though he'd been told to be quiet, Conway just had to ask. "This isn't your first time, is it?"

Paul tried to control himself from growling too loudly as he shredded a leaf of lettuce in half. "What are you talking about…?"

"Well…" Conway continued to monitor Paul's work as he resumed slicing the cucumber he started on. He could tell for sure this was Paul's first time slicing a cucumber, as he was improperly handling the knife and making the slices horrifically uneven. "I'm figuring this is your first time making a salad based on how you're doing it. Did Reggie honestly do _all_ of the cooking at home?"

Paul grunted as he forced the knife down with both hands gripping the handle to cut another slice (more like a chunk, though) of cucumber before glaring at Conway. "You're saying I'm doing this wrong, then."

"I'd be wrong to say you're doing it perfectly," Conway admitted, nervously uttering a laugh. "You needn't force yourself. I can handle both courses if you're not comfortable…"

"Why would this make me uncomfortable?!" Paul snapped back, even though that's exactly how he felt that very moment. "It's just _cooking!_ One of the simplest tasks in the world!"

"And evidently, you can't cook," Conway pointed out. "I suppose I shouldn't be surprised since you focus all your energies on Pokémon training, but-"

"Shut up!" Paul said again, now highly aggravated. His eyes were now glued to Conway as he fervently sliced the rest of the cucumber. "Maybe if you weren't such a so-called 'perfect' cook, you wouldn't be such a crappy trainer, Conway!"

Conway blinked, confused at the statement. "I never said _I_ was perfect at it… Paul, you really ought to be careful…"

Paul refused to take his advice, however. "You're being a condescending prep again! I even said when we first met on the ship to _never_ talk down to-…" He was cut off by a sudden (but controlled) yelp of his own. Conway already figured out what happened before Paul did and proceeded to walk over to him.

"This is exactly why I said you should be careful," Conway scolded, now intentionally being condescending. "As hard and fast as you were cutting, it's a wonder you didn't slice your finger off."

Indeed, Paul's lack of paying attention earned him quite a nasty cut on his index finger, and it was already bleeding. Paul winced and tried to hide it from Conway, but the blood dripping onto the chopping block gave him away. The only excuse he could give was, "W-well… accidents happen."

"This one could have been avoided if you didn't get all riled up," Conway noted. "Go ahead and wash it off under the sink; good thing you weren't handling the meat. I'll go get a bandage for you."

"Really, it's not…" Paul couldn't finish his sentence before Conway left the kitchen to get what he needed. "Necessary…" He sighed and went to the sink, running the faucet to clean off his minor injury. Paul knew he was in for a _long_ night.

Conway was quick to return, ready with a band-aid that was coated with an antibiotic to help keep the cut clean. "Has it stopped bleeding yet?" He asked with mild concern.

Paul turned off the faucet and shook his head, remaining silent.

"Must've been a deep cut," Conway figured. "Come on over here; let's get you patched up."

Resistance was futile, Paul knew. Therefore, he obeyed his companion and came to him, allowing said companion to carefully wrap the band-aid around his finger. The cut was completely covered and secure, sure to heal more quickly now. Still, Paul couldn't deny that he was still in a bit of pain.

After seeing Paul wince slightly, Conway smiled and brought Paul's bandaged finger to his lips, giving it a quick kiss. "There! All better!"

"What the…?!" Paul immediately shuffled backwards, putting serious distance between himself and Conway. This kind of thing seemed like something an odd person like Conway would do, but Paul simply didn't expect it at the time. "What was _that_ all about?!"

Conway looked relatively innocent, however, and seemed genuinely bewildered at Paul's reaction. "Isn't that what you're supposed to do? If you get a little cut or something and your mom patches it up, she kisses it to make it better, right?"

"How should I know?!" Paul hollered. "I don't remember anything my mother did! You're the one with parents; why are you asking me?!"

"My mom never did it for me," Conway said with a shrug. "But I've seen other moms do it with their kids plenty of times… both in TV and real life. Sloan even did it for me a few times."

Paul looked a little horrified. "Your _cousin_ does this?"

"Well, not anymore, obviously," Conway said with a laugh. "But I always saw Sloan as the big brother I wish I had. He and I shared similar interests, so I got along with him much better than I did with Franny. I'd trade her in for him in a heartbeat. Only problem is the age gap, really…"

"It figures that the rest of your family would be freaky just like you," Paul commented. "Just keep it _off_ of me, alright? You're on thin ice here, Conway."

Conway sighed and looked out the window to view the shining moon outside. "A pity I can't introduce you to Sloan. Ever since he started working for the government, he's hardly been available for anything." He apparently took no notice to Paul's warning. "Come to think of it, I lent him a couple of games and he's yet to return them to me… surely he'd be done with them by now. He's the one who showed me the ropes in that specific area."

"You know, it's somehow creepier that you obsess over your cousin compared to how you obsess over that girl," Paul pointed out. "I think I'll live without being 'graced' by his presence. Now, weren't we in the middle of making dinner?"

"Oh, that's right!" Conway exclaimed, embarrassed that he forgot. "Mom and dad'll be home any minute now!" He then looked uneasily to Paul, unsure if he wanted his companion to try out cooking again. "Uh, Paul… how about you take a seat at the table and I'll just finish up here?"

Paul looked snooty as he understood the meaning behind that suggestion. "Fine by me; I didn't want to cook, anyway."

"Obviously," Conway concurred as he turned the heat on the stove for the stir-fry and immediately went towards the unfinished salad to pick up where Paul left off. "As much as you travel, Paul, how in the world did you survive if you can't cook?"

"It's called 'eating out'," Paul explained drolly. "Look into it."

Conway nodded as he chopped the vegetables like a professional; with rapid, consistent slicing maneuvers. "You stock up on junk, basically, and only eat real food when you see Reggie. That's not very healthy, Paul."

"I know how to eat in moderation," Paul assured, sounding confident with himself. "You'd be able to tell if I was overdoing it, wouldn't you?"

"I suppose that's true…" Conway admitted while mixing the sliced vegetables in with the bowl of lettuce. "Then again, it's hard to judge your body build since your clothes are so loose-fitting, but considering I got a good look at your build while I was drying those clothes out a few days ago, I know you're looking pretty good considering your diet." He pondered something while Paul looked disgusted at Conway's detailed analysis of his body structure. "Come to think of it, you seemed to be kind of _scrawny_, as I recall. If you live off fast food and snacks most of the time, it's no wonder I couldn't tell."

It seemed no matter what topic they were on, Conway always managed to completely offend or disturb Paul once they got in-depth enough. The younger trainer did not like being told that he was too small. "There's nothing wrong with my weight or how my body looks; will you quit being so judgmental, already?"

"Ah, irony," Conway said with a happy sigh. "Saying that like you have room to talk…" His attention turned towards his stir-fry as he began to finish that up now that he had fixed the salad. Paul gaped as Conway effortlessly flipped the contents of the frying pan around to cook it evenly and managed to keep everything in the pan. It looked like such a complicated technique, yet Conway handled it so casually that Paul completely forgot to respond to Conway's statement.

Just then, both boys heard a door open from a distance; the front door, to be precise. Conway smiled a little, knowing his parents had returned from work and were just in time to see their son cook dinner for them.

"Get a couple of plates out for me, would you?" Conway requested, with optimism present in his voice. "I know you can at least handle that." He gestured upwards. "They're in that cabinet over there."

Paul nodded stiffly as he stood up to retrieve a couple of plates, which were no doubt fine china of the like that Paul had never seen in a residential kitchen before. He was especially careful not to break them as he set the two platters on the table. Without even being told to, he went back to fetch the bowl of salad and put it at the center of the table. Then, Paul noticed something odd about this set-up.

"How in the world do you fit four people at this dinner table?" Paul asked out loud. "This isn't nearly big enough… and there are only two chairs, anyway."

"Oh?" Conway looked back at Paul while turning off the stove, now done with the main course. "This isn't really our dinner table, Paul."

Now Paul was confused, but ready to move to plates to their appropriate area. He didn't recall seeing a proper dinner table as he examined the house upon arriving, however. "Well, where is it, then?"

"We don't have one," Conway replied. He casually walked over to fill the two empty plates with stir-fry beef while Paul stared at him, not believing what he was hearing.

"How can you _not_ have a dinner table?" Paul asked. Before Conway could answer him, however, two adults had entered the kitchen at that moment, attracted by the smell of a well-cooked meal. They were not the ones who initially greeted the children, as Conway's mother was busy talking on her cell phone while Conway's father seemed to be immersed in his personal palm pilot. They seemed to be completely oblivious to reality, only brought in by the smell of the stir-fry beef.

"Mom! Dad!" Conway greeted enthusiastically, nodding to them as he finished up preparing their dishes. "Welcome home! You guys hungry…?"

Conway's mother's eyes were not at all focused on the dinner, where she was presently, or her son. Instead, she was still conversing with someone on her phone, but the smell was at least beginning to divert her attention. "My apologies, dear, but I'll have to put you on hold for the time being… yes, I know it's inconvenient; I'm very sorry about that, but I promise you it will be brief. What kind of hold music would you like…?"

"Mom…" Conway whined, though to him, this was nothing out of the ordinary. "Would it kill your client if you just hung up for once? This is kind of a special occasion, you know…"

Since he never really had friends, it wasn't every day that Paul would meet an acquaintance's mother. In fact, he couldn't remember the last time he was in company with a mother of any kind. Since he had no real memories of his own late mother, this was somewhat a jarring experience for the emotionally-repressed trainer. It disturbed Paul when he found that he couldn't take his eyes off her for this very reason.

It didn't help that, as far as appearances were concerned, Conway clearly took after his mother. She had the exact same shade of green hair as her son's, of the same length, and aside from some professional styling, most of it hung straight and loose just as Conway's did. She certainly looked as rich as she was with all of her jewelry, most notably the necklace that held a large topaz gem in the center. Her yellow business coat and skirt complimented the necklace, but of course, what undoubtedly marked her as Conway's mother was nothing other than her thick, black-rimmed glasses in the shape of diamond squares.

"You like that one the best?" Conway's mother exclaimed with amusement. "What a coincidence; I favor that one as well. I listened to it all the time when I was a little girl…"

Paul frowned at this, now seeing why Conway would be frustrated at his parents as much as he was. "It's like we're invisible. Could she be any ruder?"

"See what I mean?" Conway mumbled to his companion. He then looked to his father. "Hey, dad. Think you can stop planning your schedule for next month long enough to enjoy a nice dinner with mom? And maybe take notice to our new guest who'll be staying over for the night?"

While Conway took after his mother, it seemed Franny took after their father. His hair was deep blue – the color of the sea – and cut rather short, though he had a unique fringe roughly kept at an even length with slightly-longer sideburns. He too kept up the apparent family tradition of wearing glasses – his lenses were in the shape of flattened circles. However, his eyes were blue unlike his wife's and son's. Outside of his gold wrist watch, he was more modestly-dressed than his wife and still in his lab coat.

Conway's father's eyes remained glued to his palm pilot after his son attempted to communicate with him. What was also now apparent was that he too was speaking to someone else on the phone; the difference from his wife was that his line was linked to an earpiece that had a small microphone attached to the side. "No, no, I'm afraid I'm booked solid that week, sir. We'll have to start our research another time; is it possible to preserve the specimen until then…? You think so?"

Conway heaved out a heavy sigh in reaction to this. "I was hoping the smell of food would at least get those two off the phone… clearly I was asking for too much."

Paul simply shook his head and stepped forward. "I think you're simply too much of a wuss to _really_ try and get their attention," he said, glaring at both parents. "Watch this."

After raising up both hands, Paul closed his eyes and snapped his fingers rather loudly to get Conway's parents to clam up. "Hey, idiots! Down here!"

Surprisingly, this worked. Paul spoke loud and clear, well over the voices on both phones, and the sharp tone was more than enough to get their attention. The fact that Conway's parents realized there was a total stranger in their house now also helped. Upon seeing that this _worked_, Conway gasped – not only because Paul was successful in getting their attention, but because he was so openly rude and nasty towards his elders for once.

"Let me… put you on hold now," Conway's mother told her client as she immediately did so after saying it. She refocused her attention on the very unfamiliar boy standing in her kitchen.

"Please… excuse me for a moment," Conway's father said apologetically to his colleague on his line, also putting him on hold to stare down at Paul.

Paul nodded, but still stared indignantly at Conway's parents. "Now that I have your attention, you should know that Conway's been trying to get _your_ attention for the past couple of minutes now. He even made dinner for you. Work is over, so it's high time you stopped acting like employees and started acting like _parents_ now."

That was something Conway had wanted to tell his parents for ages, but never quite had to guts to go through with it. Mainly, he thought it wouldn't be worth it, but somehow, Paul managed to get through to them where he could not. He looked to Paul, clearly grateful for this, but Paul ironically was ignoring him at the moment.

"Irma, is this one of your friends' kids…?" Conway's father asked his wife, scratching his head in confusion.

Irma slowly shook her head, trying to figure out if she'd actually seen this child before. "Not that I recall, Harold… I believe most of them are older than this."

"He's _my_ friend," Conway said, stepping forward into the conversation. "We ran into each other at Canalave City and he's spending the night here if that's alright with you two."

Paul quietly groaned and slumped over in his position, as he still absolutely hated to be considered Conway's _friend_. Still, he knew it was best to play along… "It was a rather sudden occurrence; otherwise we would have informed you ahead of time."

"Oh, that makes sense!" Irma deduced, though judging by her tone of voice, she sounded rather vacant and/or tired. "And it seems we have a dinner awaiting us, dear!"

Harold smiled at the sight. "Yes, that's a relief. It's been such a busy day; I dreaded the idea of having to make our own dinner."

"It all looks so wonderful," Irma remarked as she approached the table, taking a plate of stir-fry and a bowl of salad for herself. "How thoughtful of Franny to go through the trouble of making it for us."

Paul looked aghast at this. He couldn't believe they credited the _wrong person_ for making their dinner. Conway too was shocked, but also angered that he was being ignored again.

"Excuse me, but Franny had _nothing_ to do with this dinner!" He shouted. "All she's done is sit her lazy, unproductive butt on that couch in the living room and maybe read a book or two! I'm the one who made the dinner, and Paul helped me!"

Even though he really didn't do very much at all, Paul was surprised to be credited in assisting the dinner. He still looked expectantly at Conway's parents, seeing to it that they would give proper credit where it's due.

"We really appreciate your contributions, Franny," Harold said, sounding fully appreciative… only still for the _wrong person_. "Especially since you could be leaving with your cousin at any time; it's nice to know you're making the best of your time before you go off to pursue a career. We're very proud of you."

"Delicious as always!" Irma complimented, having already dug in. "What a thoughtful daughter we have." She smiled and looked to her husband. "It _has_ been a long day… shall we settle ourselves in for the night, dear?"

Harold nodded. "An excellent suggestion, honey. If we hurry, we'll still make it in time for the news."

Irma nodded back to her husband, quick to get the dinner trays so they could both quickly and conveniently carry off their dinners away from the kitchen. After loading up and getting a couple of drinks and a bottle of salad dressing, the pair scurried off. While Conway sighed, having accepted this as yet another failed attempt to get his parents' attention and moved on to get plates for himself and Paul, said guest tiptoed away from the kitchen to see where exactly Conway's parents went.

He didn't need to go far to see both had seated themselves on the sofa in the living room, which Franny had since vacated, right in front of the TV. Indeed, they were watching the news and eating their dinner at the same time, and on occasion would make remarks about what they've seen. Rich as Conway's family was, the sofa only seemed to be big enough for two, meaning only one thing.

"Your family doesn't eat together?" Paul asked out loud to Conway. "Your parents take up the couch and the television… where exactly do you and your sister eat?"

His first answer was a silent one, as he turned around to see Conway handing him a tray with his own plate of stir-fry beef and a bowl of salad. Reluctantly, Paul took it, but still looked to his companion, expecting an explanation.

"We'll be eating in my room," Conway finally said while getting his own tray ready. "Franny usually eats in her room, too. So, was there anything in particular you wanted to drink? Partial on what kind of salad dressing you'd like?"

Paul tried his best not to look or sound weirded out by what he just heard, but the very idea of a full family never eating their meals together was hard for him to accept.

"Whatever you're having to drink is fine, I guess," Paul mumbled. "Not really partial on dressing, either… you wouldn't happen to have balsamic vinaigrette, would you?"

"We've got pretty much everything under the sun," Conway bragged as he took out a bottle of the precise dressing Paul asked for, dangling it around. "So yeah, no problem." After putting a can of soda on his tray and Paul's, he began to lead the way out. "Ready to go?"

Paul nodded, and thus the two exited the kitchen and began their walk to Conway's room. "Are we really eating in your _bedroom?_" He asked, sounding skeptical. "Honestly, who does that…?"

To that statement, Conway blinked and looked back at Paul. "You mean you've never done it before?"

"In _my_ own room? No," Paul answered, sounding offended that his traveling partner would even ask. "Not unless I'm sick and have no choice otherwise. I was under the impression that normal families eat together at the table for every meal. Even Reggie and I stick to that tradition, and we're not a full family."

Conway only shook his head, smiling sadly at that statement. "Well, as you've seen, my family is hardly normal… and it's stretching it to even consider us a family. I can't recall a time we've ever actually eaten together. This is our usual routine."

By now, they had reached the door to Conway's room. Even though most of his previous stereotyping of Conway had been proven wrong at this point, Paul did not hesitate to assume that his nerdy friend would have a disgusting, messy room, which was one reason why he was reluctant to have to eat there.

However, again the stereotyping proved to not be true, as Conway's room was shown to be perfectly clean and organized. But then, Paul considered that perhaps it was only this way because Conway had been out of the house for quite some time, therefore not around to mess his own room up. Still, he was glad to be wrong this time and felt a bit more at ease to eat in this room.

"For a rich family, this is pretty informal of you," Paul noted, taking a seat at Conway's desk. The host himself took the only other seat present in the room, which was near his computer. "But… you've convinced me; your parents are pretty horrible."

"Honestly! How can they just _mistake_ me for Franny like that?!" Conway grumbled as he started eating his dinner. "I don't even have as much as a feminine voice! That just proves how little they pay attention to me!"

Paul indulged in his dinner as well, mildly surprised by the fact that the food did indeed taste good; Conway was as talented a cook as he appeared to be. "If you hate them, why do you make them dinner? Shouldn't this really be the mother's job, anyway?"

"I usually don't," Conway flatly replied. "Most of the time, we make our own individual dinners here. Franny makes her own, I make my own, and mom and dad make their own. It really _has_ to be that way considering how late my parents come home from work every day; I certainly wouldn't like to wait this late for dinner every night, would you?"

"True," Paul agreed after swallowing another bite of stir-fry. He didn't feel like complimenting the chef, still. "All this proves is how different we truly are, really. Maybe we should move onto something a little less pointless and depressing."

Conway sighed. "Yeah, I guess you're right. I did promise to avoid the family topic from now on, didn't I? Not much point in going on about it now that you've seen firsthand how messed up my family is. Anything in particular you wanted to talk about?"

For being the one to suggest switching the subject, Paul didn't like being put on the spot like that; he hadn't exactly planned another topic or anything. "Not really," he admitted, choosing then to focus his attention on the food rather than who he was conversing with. "You do realize your Gym Battle with Maylene is tomorrow, though. Instead of trying to make small-talk with me, you should be building up your strategy against her. She's hardly a challenge, but you're completely inexperienced with Gym Battles."

"Mm, true," Conway admitted, looking up thoughtfully. "You went against her before, though. Maybe you can give me some pointers?"

Paul frowned at what Conway was insinuating. "I'm not giving away all of her secrets for your sake; you don't deserve the easy way out."

"I didn't mean that!" Conway snapped back, feeling offended. "It won't be any fun if you spoil the surprises she has in store for me. Based on the conversation we all had back at the hospital, though, it sounds like she has a Lucario, which is… a Fighting and Steel-type."

"Correct," Paul affirmed with a nod. "Expect her to hold Lucario off until last. You do at least know she primarily uses Fighting-type Pokémon, right?"

"Figured as much," Conway replied. He then got out a notebook and started to jot down notes. "So she specializes in Fighting-types and I should expect Lucario to be her final Pokémon…" He then smiled and looked up to face Paul. "Say, I've got an idea…"

Upon seeing the lenses of his glasses flash paired with that sinister grin on his face, Paul was a little concerned about what Conway had in mind. "Should I ask…?"

"Well, since you've defeated Byron and earned your Mine Badge, you're set to head for Snowpoint City soon for your next Gym Battle, right?" Conway asked. "Not a lot of trainers go out of their way to reach that one…"

"Yes; with any luck, I should be on my way there by tomorrow after I see the pathetic spectacle of a battle you and Maylene are sure to put on," Paul replied, sounding particularly cold at the end of his sentence. Conway continued to pay no mind to his attitude, however.

Instead, he nodded in understanding of what Paul had told him. "So you're going to need to build yourself a strategy for your next Gym Battle as well, and we both know that's going to be centered around combating Ice-type Pokémon."

Paul looked suspicious about Conway's intentions, now. "What exactly are you getting at…?"

"Let's help build each others' strategies!" Conway proposed. "I may not have experience in battling Gym Leaders, but I've invested years into formulating effective battling strategies, so it wouldn't hurt you to at least consider some of my ideas."

The egotistical Paul was very reluctant to let anyone other than himself have a say in his battle plans. But after thinking it over quickly, he realized it was either this or going back to complaining about their parents and siblings… or even worse: total, awkward silence.

With a begrudging sigh, Paul bowed his head and conceded. "Fine; do you have another notebook?"

"Go ahead and take this one since I've already written Maylene-related stuff on it," Conway offered, tossing his notebook to Paul. Though slightly startled by the throw, Paul caught it while Conway pulled out another notebook for himself to write in. "So, then! Whose strategy shall we work on first?"

"Unless I'm mistaken, they do four-on-four battles over at Snowpoint Gym," Paul said, though he wasn't completely sure. "Mine will probably take longer to go through. We'll start with yours."

Conway nodded and relaxed, ready to answer any question Paul could toss his way. "I suppose the first thing we need to do is establish what Pokémon _I_ will be using for this Gym Battle."

"Right," Paul affirmed, beginning to write into the notebook. "Slowking's typing would be good against Maylene's Pokémon, so I assume you're using it?"

"Without a doubt," Conway said casually, taking a bite of salad. "I'll also use Heracross…"

"Not a bad choice, either," Paul noted, writing down Heracross as Conway's second member. "What will be your last Pokémon, then?"

Conway looked up at his ceiling and pondered. "Well, Castform would be a poor choice type-wise, not to mention it's a recent capture, therefore inexperienced… and I'm training it for Contests anyway, should I participate in any… guess it'll have to be Aggron."

To that, Paul _had_ to gape at Conway for his decision. "That's an even _worse_ choice for-…" Then he paused. "You have an Aggron…?"

"Of course I do," Conway said, expecting Paul to have known already. "I used it during the Tag Battle Tournament while Dawn and I were moving up the ranks… you didn't notice?"

"Why would I?" Paul asked defensively. "I couldn't have cared less about your performance there, Conway. I only paid attention to you when you became my opponent, which was only during the finals in which you used Heracross."

Conway huffed in aggravation in response to that. "Sorry. I forgot you were a self-centered egomaniac for a second, there. Thanks for reminding me. Why do you care that I have an Aggron, anyway?"

Paul thought it over a moment before answering the question; naturally, he was interested Conway's Aggron because he himself owned a Pokémon of Aggron's evolutionary line: Lairon. It had been ages since he used it and obviously never got around to fully evolving it; it was one of those things Paul had meant to accomplish but simply kept putting it off in favor of pursuing Pokémon that were already strong and fully-evolved right out of the gate. He had caught the Lairon as an Aron during his travels in Hoenn, which was the first region he traveled through and competed in the League Conference. Back then, he was younger and a bit more naïve… his views on Pokémon training were a little different all those years ago.

Thinking it over, Paul decided not to share any more of his past with Conway than he already had. "Don't misunderstand; I don't care. I just didn't expect someone like you to own something like an Aggron."

"I like their versatility," Conway noted, smirking. "Plus, it was _so_ cute when I caught it as an Aron. It certainly took a while to completely evolve it… they wouldn't be your type of Pokémon since you're far too impatient, Paul, but it was well worth it when we reached our goal."

Now Paul was just angry; not only to know that Conway succeeded in something where he failed, but to be _told_ to his face why exactly he failed, even if Conway didn't know of Paul's Lairon to begin with. "Oh, shut it. Regardless of versatility, Aggron's a terrible choice to use against Maylene. You really should pick something else."

"The double-weakness _will_ be tricky to work around, but I think Aggron can get the job done," Conway said confidently. "Besides, I don't really have any other Pokémon that have the battle experience required for handling a Gym Battle. You really don't have room to talk, you know. All of the Pokémon that you used against Byron had a disadvantage of some kind against his team, and _you_ managed to prevail despite the odds being stacked against you."

"That's because _I'm_ a veteran and clearly know what I'm doing," Paul argued. "I can afford to make it challenging for myself; you, on the other hand, can't. But I suppose there's no changing your mind about this."

To this, Conway smiled and shook his head. "Not really, so you'd better go ahead and add Aggron to the list."

Paul sighed and did so, adding its dual-typing of Steel/Rock beside its name, just as he wrote Water/Psychic next to Slowking's name, as well as Bug/Fighting next to Heracross. Since he was keeping this a challenge for Conway, Paul only kept it in his head that Maylene's team consisted of Machoke – a pure Fighting-type Pokémon – a Meditite; Fighting and Psychic, and Lucario; Fighting and Steel. What he did add were side-notes about the effectiveness of Fighting-type moves against each of Conway's Pokémon: Slowking resisted them well, as did Heracross, but underlined that Aggron was double-weak to the type.

"Alright, I've got your team written down," Paul confirmed, looking up to Conway. "Are you sending them out in a specific order?"

This took a bit more time for Conway to decide on. "Well, I _am_ allowed to substitute," he acknowledged. "That may complicate things a bit. I think I'll lull Maylene into a false sense of security by sending Aggron out first, since it isn't likely to last long, anyway."

Nodding in agreement, Paul listed Aggron as the one to be sent out in the first round. "That's making the best of your poor decision, at least. Barring substitutions, are you planning to specifically hold one of the other two back for last?"

"Slowking's my strongest player, no doubt," Conway said. "If Maylene is to save her Lucario for last, I will do the same with my Slowking."

"If you say so…" Paul made a note that Slowking would be the final Pokémon sent out. "So that's all established. What's left would be… their known moves, and how to utilize them." He sighed, tiring of this already.

Noticing Paul's discontent look, Conway smiled at him. "I can list them out and you'll figure out what to use and how to use them, since I'll be doing the same for you. That'll take a while, so how about you give me your information on your Gym Battle, so we can both do the strategizing together?"

Reluctantly, Paul nodded slightly as he realized that would be the best route to go. "Alright, then… we'll move on to my strategy."

Before preparing his round of questions, Conway looked out his window to see a beautiful night sky outside. It was a perfect night, considering the weather conditions. "Feeling a little stuffy, Paul?" He asked rather suddenly.

"A… little, I guess," Paul responded, yet again disturbed by Conway's ability to read his expressions and correctly predict what he was thinking that very moment. "Why?"

After hearing the confirmation, Conway pulled open a drawer at his computer station and took out a couple of flashlights. "How about we get some fresh air and hang out at the backyard for a while as we write out our strategy suggestions?"

It was a strange offer, Paul thought, but he figured he might prefer the outdoors to this creepy and deceptively huge house of his companion's, if only for a while. "I suppose I can deal with that."

"Then follow me!" Conway told him while opening the window. Paul's eyes widened as he watched Conway actually climb out his window and jump onto a nearby tree branch; one that was large and thick enough to support his weight. Taking his notebook and pen with him, Paul rushed to the window to see Conway perfectly stable on the tree, now grabbing a rope.

"A-are you crazy or something?!" Paul shouted out. "That's how you want to go outside?!"

Conway paused before he was about to take off on the rope. "It's either this or going back out through the living room, which means crossing by _my parents_ again. I think seeing them one more time tonight's going to make me hurl, and I'd rather not lose my dinner on their account. Would _you?_"

The idea of having to see Conway's parents _did_ anger Paul, if only because their bad parenting reminded him of his own father, whom he despised. He rolled his eyes as he gave Conway an answer. "I hate it when you're right…"

"No need to worry!" Conway called out, which riled up Paul even more for having to hear Dawn's catchphrase for the umpteenth time today. "You can handle this! Haven't you ever climbed a tree before?"

"Of course I have," Paul retorted, though it had been a while since he tried. "I'm just not very keen on jumping out a window three stories above the ground, _that's_ all."

Much to Paul's displeasure, Conway gave him an encouraging smile. "I promise, it's rather safe! This tree is as sturdy as a boulder! I've done this for years; even four year-olds can do this!"

Naturally, after hearing that remark, Paul automatically started climbing out the window. It made Conway feel good to know exactly how to get Paul to do whatever he wanted; he was just rather amused how susceptible Paul was to childish taunting.

Paul clearly hesitated, but managed to jump and land on the tree branch successfully. After wobbling a bit, Paul chose to cling and crawl on the branch rather than walk over it like Conway did, which prompted the latter to laugh. "You seem to be rusty, Paul!"

"Shut. Up." Paul growled, gritting his teeth as he crawled his way to Conway's position, where he finally deemed it safe enough to stand up. "Now what?"

"Obviously, we're descending via this rope," Conway said, eyeing said rope that he still held onto. "Just watch and learn!"

Like a king of the jungle, Conway latched onto the rope and swung on it full-force. Paul gaped as he witnessed his companion swing and jump from his position, which was still rather high off the ground, and still managed to land on his feet with pure grace. Unseen to Paul, Conway winced a bit at the pain of the initial landing, but quickly turned around to face the younger trainer and grinned. "See? It's easy!"

"They should put you in a cage and send you to the zoo," Paul coldly remarked. "You're totally reckless; I am _not_ doing that."

Amused with Paul's apparent nervousness, Conway looked slyly to his guest. "So how _are_ you going to get down from the tree, Paul?"

Paul grabbed the rope and hopped onto it. Rather than swinging and performing a suicide jump, he chose to simply climb down the rope until he was low enough to let go and comfortably land on the ground. Putting his hands on his hips, Paul frowned at Conway. "Like a normal person would. Can we get back to strategizing, now?"

Unimpressed, Conway sighed and turned on his flashlight and tossed the other one to Paul, who quickly caught it. "Fine, be boring about it." He looked to a small hill covered with grass that incidentally was perfect for stargazing. "Let's sit over there."

The two made their way to that area and sat down on the grass and opened their notebooks back up to the appropriate page; the flashlights obviously enabled the boys to be able to see what they were writing while being surrounded by the natural darkness of the late night.

"So we've established which Pokémon you're using against Maylene and what order they will be sent out," Paul reviewed. "And we'll write out the more detailed strategies after you inquire about my choices for my eventual Gym Battle."

Conway nodded in agreement. "That would be correct, so let's get this underway. You're challenging the Snowpoint Gym, which specializes in Ice-type Pokémon… shocker," he added sarcastically. "According to the news and my resources, the Gym Leader is an adorable young lady named Candice, who is a teacher at the Trainers' School in Snowpoint City."

"Great," Paul muttered, rolling his eyes once more. "Another girl to deal with…"

"Ah-ah, no need for misogynist remarks," Conway scolded. "I'm sure Candice is a very likable girl. Now, we have no idea what any of her Pokémon are, but we do know that she should primarily have Ice Pokémon, or at least partially Ice… that makes things tricky. And apparently she has four of them, so we'll need four candidates for your battle, Paul." The young freelancer looked up and locked eyes with Paul. "Have you decided that, yet?"

Paul nodded, as if he'd decided this a long time ago. "Most of my team proved to have a commendable degree of endurance against Byron's Pokémon. Ice-types are typically fragile compared to Steel-types, so overcoming the odds should be even easier for them this time around, and there are some who I've not yet tested true endurance on."

"Meaning you're purposely choosing the wrong Pokémon to fight with again, I presume," Conway figured with a groan. "Way to put the workload on me, Paul."

"Deal with it," Paul heartlessly remarked. "I plan to use Ursaring, Honchkrow, Gliscor, and Torterra."

Conway immediately looked freaked out, but shook it off to write down Paul's choices, though he still looked worried. "Ursaring… just a Normal-type, but fine, since I saw it had Fighting-type moves…"

Paul nodded. "Ursaring failed to defeat any of Byron's Pokémon, so I have it on notice. It'd better perform well this time around."

"Way to put the pressure on," Conway mumbled as he wrote down the second choice. "Honchkrow… Dark and Flying-typed. Uh, Paul, that's going to be a problem."

However, Paul remained firm. "It did well against Bronzor, but fainted instantly when it was hit by Steelix's Ice Fang. It failed to overcome its weakness, so we're going to try it again."

"To be fair, Honchkrow was really weakened by Bronzor before it took that Ice Fang attack," Conway pointed out. "You should consider that."

"I am," Paul said. "With Ice-type Pokémon, I'll see for sure if it can handle the type disadvantage at full strength."

Conway sighed, continuing to write. "As long as we're clear on that… so you next said… Gliscor?! Paul, you hypocrite! It's a Ground and Flying-type; that means it's got a double-weakness to Ice! And here you were criticizing me for using Aggron against Maylene!"

In response to that, Paul huffed in annoyance. "I have a right to criticize you because _you_ have no prior experience with Gym Battles, so you're a complete idiot for intentionally using the wrong Pokémon for your first battle. Compared to me, you're nothing; I have three regions' worth of prior experience, plus all of the Gyms I conquered in Sinnoh so far. If I'm using a Pokémon with a double-weakness, I wouldn't do so without a plan."

"This handicap is rather hard to plan around, you know," Conway complained. "And you said your last choice was Torterra! Grass and Ground! That's _another_ double-weakness to Ice, Paul!"

"So?" Paul asked, even more annoyed now. "Torterra's my strongest Pokémon with near-impenetrable defense. It can handle a double-weakness, no problem."

After Conway finished writing down Torterra on the roster list, he sighed and looked at Paul again. "Okay, Paul? I know you want to give yourself a little extra challenge here since you've convinced yourself that you're better than everyone else in this region… but believe me when I say there is a difference between a making-it-harder-on-yourself approach and an absolutely, positively _retarded_ approach to a strategy." His eyes narrowed. "Guess which one yours is right now."

"I never said I was better than everyone in Sinnoh," Paul said with a grumble. "Don't put words in my mouth. The only _retarded_ person amongst the two of us is you, if you can't make a good strategy with the choices I've made. If you're incapable of doing so, then I'll just make it myself and you can be on your own against Maylene."

Flailing a bit at the suggestion, Conway wailed at the fact that he was out of line (in Paul's eyes) and suddenly looked apologetic. "Alright, alright, fine! I'm sorry; I'll write your strategy! I'll do my best, I promise!"

Paul smirked at this, though in the back of his mind he was a bit disturbed that Conway was so desperate to make amends with him… almost as if he was _dependant_ on his company or something. Still, the thought remained in the back of his mind as he got back to the strategy talk. "Alright, then. You said you're going to lull Maylene into a false sense of security by sending out Aggron first, correct?"

"Y-yes, I did," Conway said, somewhat uneasy. "What about it?"

"I'll do the same with Candice," Paul decided. "Make a note that I'm going to send out Honchkrow first."

"Ah, very well…" Conway was still uncertain of what Paul had up his sleeve, but made a note that Honchkrow would be the first Pokémon sent out. "Honchkrow was your first choice last time, though."

Paul nodded, remembering that detail very well. "It isn't without reason that I send Honchkrow out first. Not only will it fool Candice and make her overconfident, but Honchkrow is the fastest of my four choices. Therefore, it has the greatest chance to dodge any attack Candice will throw at it."

"Hm… good point," Conway said, understanding Paul's point of view now. "Do you want to reserve any of them for last specifically?"

"Torterra," Paul simply said, closing his eyes. "Last line of defense and the one that can blow any Pokémon away with its power. It's as simple as that."

Conway simply shrugged and jotted down that note. "You'll need a heck of a lot of luck to pull this off… that's all I've got to say."

"We've established both of our rosters," Paul confirmed, ignoring Conway's remark. "So now it's down to moves and strategy."

"Indeed," Conway concurred. "To make a strategy, I'll need to know the moves you plan on implementing for each Pokémon, and you'll need the same information from me regarding my team."

"Ah, let's see…" Paul looked up, trying to recall each of his Pokémon's moves and which ones to use against Candice. "You've seen a few of Honchkrow's moves already, and I plan to stick with those."

Conway blinked, forgetting the Gym Battle he had witnessed a few days ago for a moment. "Oh, right! Your Honchkrow knows Sky Attack, Shadow Ball, Dark Pulse, and Aerial Ace. You're sticking with those, then…?"

"It _can_ use Night Slash as well," Paul told him. "I'm not sure if I want to include that in my strategy… if you can find a way, though, go for it."

"Gotcha," Conway assured, writing all of the attacks down. "Unless I'm mistaken, Honchkrow's only ability is Super Luck. I'll just write that down for reference. Now let's see… I saw Ursaring's moves as well: Hammer Arm, Secret Power, and Focus Blast."

Paul nodded. "Right, and I'm sticking with those moves. Put down Headbutt as well."

"Guess that wouldn't have been very useful against Byron," Conway assumed as he wrote down Ursaring's moves. "And its ability?"

"Guts," Paul replied quickly. "I'm hoping there won't be another situation where it's completely frozen and helpless again."

With that, Ursaring's statistics were complete. "It's going to be risky, and like I said, you're going to need a lot of luck," Conway warned. "Ursaring's done… guess you're giving Weavile a break now."

Not wanting to seem overly nice in front of his companion, Paul shrugged. "It did win me the Mine Badge, and I'm likely going to need it to assist me on the way to Snowpoint City as it is."

That meant Paul intended to take the difficult, more treacherous route to Snowpoint City. Conway had a bad feeling about that, but shook it off for the time being. "Alright, so tell me about Gliscor; moves and ability."

"Its ability is Hyper Cutter," Paul replied. "And I think it'll go with Guillotine, X-Scissor, Screech… and Steel Wing."

"Good call," Conway complimented as he wrote what was dictated. "Steel Wing will at least seriously damage Candice's Pokémon."

"It'd better," Paul grumbled. "Torterra… I may have to consider some extra training for it on the way up to Snowpoint City. Only one of its moves will be useful, and it comes with a price."

Conway adjusted his glasses before looking up at Paul, slightly curious about his vague words. "Well, obviously its ability is Overgrow… what does Torterra have right now?"

Looking sharply to Conway, Paul reluctantly told him. "Frenzy Plant, Giga Drain, Leaf Storm, and Hyper Beam."

"Ooh," Conway said, wincing. "Yeah… I remember seeing that during the Tag Battle Tournament when you and Ash were against Brock and Holly. It has a powerful Leaf Storm to be able to take down a Poison Pokémon like Croagunk, but when Hyper Beam is fired off, the user can't move for a while. You can't afford to be a sitting duck against Candice's Pokémon."

Hearing this amused the young trainer. "So you were watching that battle…"

"I watched every battle that you and Ash had," Conway casually informed. "As did Dawn, Brock, and Holly. We all figured you two had no chance of winning, considering the how dysfunctional you and Ash were."

"And yet we won," Paul noted, though didn't sound particularly proud of it. "Still, I wouldn't overestimate the power of Torterra's Leaf Storm… that Croagunk wasn't all that impressive to me. I won't be able to overcome Candice with Hyper Beam alone."

Conway couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Are you kidding? Brock's Croagunk was awesome!" But then he narrowed his eyes. "Not that there's any point in debating this, because we both know it'll go nowhere… we should think about a new move or two for your Torterra to learn."

"Well, you're the one writing my strategy," Paul pointed out. "What would you suggest?"

Conway looked up to the stars, going through the possible options for Torterra in his mind. "Hm… well, Ice-type Pokémon are weak to Fire, Fighting, Steel, and Rock moves, assuming they don't have a dual typing that negates the weakness. Torterra can't learn any Fire-type moves, so that's out…"

Paul raised an eyebrow at his companion. "What type do you think would be best of the remaining three, then?"

"Between Steel, Fighting, and Rock?" Conway wondered about that. "Well, let's go about this logically. Odds are low that Candice has a pure Ice-type in her team considering so few of those known actually exist. I believe Snover and Abomasnow are rather common in northern Sinnoh, and they're partially Grass-typed. Since they're common in her area, odds are Candice might have one of the two. Pity Torterra can't learn any Fire moves since they're double-weak to that type, but…"

Grumbling, Paul decided to lie down on the grass in an attempt to relax himself. "Let's not go into the 'woulda, coulda, shoulda' nonsense, okay?"

"Aha, right," Conway nervously laughed. "Well, a dual Grass/Ice type means it doesn't negate any of the three choices. So I guess it's not the best example to use… easily, though, the most common dual-type involving Ice would be with Water."

Though he was still lying on his back, Paul raised his head up a bit to look at Conway. "You think she'll have one?"

"There's no way to know for certain," Conway admitted. "Water will negate the Steel weakness, but it will still do some damage. The other two are not negated. Going by convenience again, Sneasel can be found on the way up to Snowpoint. As you know, Sneasel is Dark and Ice."

"I know very well," Paul said flatly. "And it has a double-weakness to Fighting-type moves."

Conway smirked at Paul, thinking of his Weavile just then. "Indeed. It's also weak to the other two types, but not as severely. Since it's local, there's a good chance Candice has one."

"Maybe I should consider teaching Torterra a Fighting-type move, then," Paul mused. "What other Ice-types can be found in Sinnoh, again?"

"Well…" Conway thought for a moment. "Snorunt can be found there, but it's pure Ice. Candice might have one of those, or one of its split evolutions. Glalie is also purely Ice, but Froslass is partially a Ghost-type."

Paul frowned upon hearing that. "Meaning a Fighting-type move won't work on it at all…"

"That it won't," Conway affirmed. "Rock and Steel moves will still hurt it, though. Dark-type moves are also super-effective, though, and I know Torterra is capable of learning Crunch. Might be something to consider."

"Maybe," Paul said, now concerned about how increasingly difficult his choice had become. "Anything else to possibly expect from the Gym Leader?"

Conway was furiously writing down everything about their conversation in regards to what Candice could possibly have on a separate page. He paused after hearing Paul's question. "Uh, gee… pretty sure there's something else…"

Suddenly, Paul remembered something. "Hang on, there's something I remember about the last time I saw those losers," he told Conway, which highly intrigued the latter. "Now what was it…?"

"Something related to what we're talking about?" Conway asked, sounding just the slightest bit excited. "How interesting..."

Then, it came to him. However, Paul was not that happy about it, as he knew mentioning it would cause Conway to derail the conversation. He decided to be discreet about it. "I saw them training one day," he said cautiously, eyeing the eager Conway. "I'm pretty sure I saw a Swinub amongst them. I hadn't seen it with any of them before then, meaning it must have been a recent capture."

The moonlight reflected against the lenses of Conway's glasses, making them flash as Conway quietly laughed to himself. "Do you know whose it was, by any chance…?"

Oh, how Paul hated it when Conway did that. "I didn't pay much attention to them, so no," he lied. "But focus back on the topic, Conway: that Swinub must have been caught in this region, and isn't it partially an Ice-type?"

Needless to say, Conway was let down by Paul's dismissal of the potential topic of Dawn, but went back to his duties regardless. "It is," he confirmed. "The other type being Ground. So you're insinuating that Candice may own something of the Swinub evolutionary line since it can be caught in Sinnoh?"

"I'd say it's possible," Paul figured as his gaze returned to the stars in the sky. "So what would be useful in that scenario?"

After a moment of thought, Conway figured it out. "Unfortunately, it has no double-weakness. It's still susceptible to Fighting and Steel, however. Rock-type moves are only neutral."

"This is going to be a nightmare of a decision," Paul complained. "Anything else I should be aware of?"

"Uh…" Conway smiled awkwardly. "I doubt Candice would have one, but there are Delibird in northern Sinnoh. "They're double-weak to Rock moves and still weak to Steel. Fighting would be neutral, but like I said, it isn't… a particularly powerful Pokémon in any sense of the word, so I doubt a Gym Leader would own one."

Paul just sighed in exasperation. "Is that it, then?"

As Conway crossed out Delibird as a possibility, he checked through his memory banks yet again. "If Candice ever had an Eevee, she could have evolved it by the Ice Rock and gotten herself a Glaceon, but that's a pure Ice-type. Uh… only other thing she could realistically have is a Smoochum or a Jynx. Ice and Psychic."

"If that were the case, I would hope it's a Jynx," Paul said, grumbling. "Smoochum would be pathetic against anything regardless of type advantages."

"Don't say that!" Conway cried out defensively. "Smoochum's adorable! I'd love to have one of my own!"

"I bet you would," Paul muttered under his breath. "Stop your whining and do your strategizing."

Conway pouted, but did as he was told. "Hmph… well, it's weak to both Rock and Steel. Fighting is neutral… but it's also weak to Dark-type moves, so again, Crunch is something to consider."

"And that's it," Paul noted. "So, tally them up. See what types would cover the most Pokémon so I can decide on a new move or two to teach Torterra."

"Just be patient, alright?" Conway requested. "Things like this take time… try admiring the scenery. Time flies when you do that; believe me."

Paul fixated his gaze on the galaxy above them once more. "Sure… whatever you say." He didn't want to admit it out loud, but it _was_ a beautiful night. The stars shining distantly in space before him were at least comforting… though it was beyond him why it was like that.

After a while, Conway was finished with his work. "Okay! This is really up to you in the end, Paul, as the numbers can be interpreted in different ways, but…"

"Just get to the point," Paul cut in, interrupting his companion. "We've deliberated over this long enough."

"Okay! Sheesh," Conway muttered, frowning. "Factoring in Rock, Steel, Fighting, and Dark types versus every known dual-typed Pokémon with Ice, plus the pure Ice-type Pokémon, only Rock and Fighting will deal four times the damage over a neutral attack. This is for Ice/Flying and Dark/Ice respectively, but mind you that Ice/Flying represents only Delibird, which we've established is unlikely for Candice to use in a serious battle."

Paul nodded in understanding of this. "So if I want to deal major damage, Fighting is my only option, and that's only _if_ she has Sneasel or Weavile."

"The odds of that are relatively high, however," Conway pointed out. "So keep that in mind. Alright, onto the not-as-severe weaknesses… Steel has the most with eight: pure Ice, Grass/Ice, Dark/Ice, Ice/Ghost, Ice/Ground, Ice/Flying, and Ice/Psychic. Rock is next, covering six areas: Ice, Grass/Ice, Ice/Water, Dark/Ice, Ice/Ghost, and Ice/Psychic. Fighting has four: Ice, Grass/Ice, Ice/Water, and Ice/Ground. Dark's only super-effective with two of them: Ice/Ghost and Ice/Psychic."

"Hm…" Paul disapproved of what he considered earlier. "Perhaps I won't have Torterra use Crunch after all, then. I think it will definitely be learning a Steel-type move, though. It covers a lot of ground, and the only Pokémon set to fight that has a move of that type is Gliscor at present."

Conway nodded as he continued looking through the list he made. "I agree; you should equip more than one Pokémon with a Steel move. We'll get around to choosing that in a minute. You said you wanted Torterra to learn another type of move, too?"

"Might as well," Paul said. "As a whole, the Grass-type moves will be utterly useless no matter how powerful they are. Torterra will have enough problems with its typing alone; it'll need _something_ to balance out that handicap. Dark doesn't cover enough ground, and Honchkrow covers that department well enough, anyway."

"Ah, yes!" Conway exclaimed. "Thanks for bringing that up; we ought to consider your other Pokémon's moves before we decide between Rock and Fighting."

"Well, Ursaring has two Fighting-type moves," Paul noted. "None of the other three have a Rock-type move."

After re-examining his list, Conway smiled. "Since Rock covers more ground than Fighting anyway, I believe the choice is clear."

Paul closed his eyes, thankful to finally be past this now. "So… one Steel-type move and one Rock-type move for Torterra to master."

"That'll narrow down our options considerably," Conway pointed out optimistically. "So let me make a few suggestions for your Steel move… feasible ones would be Iron Head and Iron Tail. Personally, considering Torterra's mobility –or lack thereof – Iron Head would probably suit it better."

Paul nodded, seeing this as a perfectly logical deduction. "That makes sense. Iron Head it is, then."

Deep down inside, it warmed Conway's heart to see Paul take his suggestions seriously. He was seeing this as something as a breakthrough, though no doubt Paul saw this as practically nothing. "Excellent! So now it's just down to Rock moves. We've got Rock Tomb, Stone Edge, and Rock Slide. There's also Stealth Rock, which doesn't directly injure the foe, but injures every Pokémon that Candice brings in after it's set."

"Considering I'm using Torterra last and Candice won't be allowed to make substitutions, I doubt it'll be useful," Paul said, waving his hand dismissively. "Next."

Conway blushed a bit in embarrassment, but tried to brush it off by responding casually. "Ah… touché. Well, then, Rock Tomb is the weakest of the remaining three, but can lower your opponent's speed and possibly make it flinch. Rock Slide is a bit more powerful, though best used in double battles since it can hit both opponents. It's a little more reliable and can make the opponent flinch. Stone Edge is the strongest of the three – a little less-reliable than Rock Slide, and it won't make the opponent flinch, but it's got a good chance of landing critical hits."

"Stone Edge," Paul decided quickly. "I want to take her Pokémon out quickly. A critical Stone Edge will do the job where the others can't."

It was somewhat off-putting to hear Paul make a decision in haste, but Conway shrugged and wrote it down. "That'll do it, then. Now it's your turn to interview me." With a cheesy grin, he promised, "I'll make sure we breeze by that one since you're looking a little tired."

Paul grumbled as he sat up, tiredly grabbing his notebook and pen and turned his flashlight on so he could see what he would be writing. "You'd better make this quick. I'm not going to pamper you in the least… let's start with Aggron." He glared upon remembering how stupid he found it of Conway to use Aggron against Maylene… but couldn't deny that he was just the tiniest bit envious of Conway simply having an Aggron to begin with.

"Its ability is Rock Head. Of course, my Aggron has Iron Defense," Conway began, though he was quickly cut off by Paul as he scribbled down the move.

"Yeah, it's going to _need_ it," Paul retorted, sounding somewhat angry. This confused Conway, but he chose to ignore it for now.

"I don't expect Aggron to last for long, even with Iron Defense, so I'd like for it to leave a _lasting_ effect on Maylene's team even after it's been defeated," Conway explained, smirking all the while. This just annoyed Paul, however.

"So, how do you plan on doing that?" He asked, sounding skeptical.

The lenses of Conway's glasses flashed just then. "Thunder Wave. Seemingly harmless, but sure to cause paralysis, which I'm sure she won't like one bit." As he chuckled to himself, Paul blinked and stared at Conway's moment of creepiness before jotting down the move on his notebook.

"I'd like to hope you're actually planning on _attacking_ with Aggron," Paul criticized, giving Conway his look of disapproval. "Even if it won't last long on the field, you ought to take advantage of the power it has."

"Why wouldn't I do that?" Conway rhetorically asked Paul. "That's why I taught it Outrage."

"Outrage?!" Paul definitely knew the power behind _that_ move. "I… guess you know the price that comes from using it…"

Conway nodded a few times, still casual. "It'll become confused after a while. I expect by then Maylene will have figured out how to bring it down, though, so I might as well go out with a bang, right?"

"I… suppose…" Paul uneasily concurred, still in mild disbelief that Conway had an Aggron that knew Outrage, of all things. "Anything else…?"

"Counter," Conway simply said. "So in case Maylene has something devastating and Aggron's still standing, it can return the favor with twice the power."

"Well… you're certainly making the best out of your weakest player," Paul commented as he finished writing. "I can't complain."

Conway just gave his guest a sly look. "And you thought I didn't know what I was doing."

Paul frowned and pointed at Conway, perhaps being too defensive about his own position. "We'll see about that tomorrow! I still fully expect a trainwreck of a Gym Battle between you two. It'll be a miracle if Reggie gets _anything_ out of watching you losers make fools of yourselves."

Surprised by the outburst, Conway leaned back away from Paul and couldn't help but stare. "What's with the attitude all of a sudden, huh…? How about we just keep going?"

Indeed, Paul had another incident of randomly blowing up at someone for no good reason. He sighed and slumped, while Conway took that as a sign that he had calmed down and went back to his usual position. "Ready to hear about Heracross?" He asked.

"You remember I _did_ fight your Heracross back at Hearthome City, right?" Paul reminded him, though Conway smirked back after being asked that.

"I would never forget that," Conway insisted. "But you don't strike me as someone who would bother to remember my Heracross' moves."

He had a point there, and Paul knew it. Self-centered as he tended to be, and since he especially didn't like Conway, he shoved all but his name and face out of his memory after the Tag Battle Tournament was behind him.

Taking the silence as an affirmation to this assumption, Conway decided to go ahead and refresh Paul's memory. "It's alright; I expected you'd forget. Megahorn, Revenge…" He then smiled evilly as he said the next one in a devious tone. "_Feint_…"

Paul took notice to that, looked up to see the cocky, teasing look on Conway's face and remembered why he put so much emphasis on listing that move. "Brag all you want about how you shattered my defense strategy," he said, scowling as he recalled the moment his Heracross broke through his then-Elekid's Protect barrier. "In the end, I still _beat_ you."

"Yes, yes, I know," Conway muttered. "Let me have a little fun, alright? Geez. Aerial Ace is the other move that I didn't get to show off before you defeated me, and its ability is Swarm. Did I go too fast for you?"

After a couple of seconds, Paul stopped writing and shook his head. "Not at all. Continue with Slowking."

"Ah, indeed… my Slowking. Its ability is Own Tempo, and I think its current move set should be acceptable for going against Maylene… so, that would be Safeguard, Protect, Psychic, and Water Pulse."

"You sure do like your annoying status and defense moves," Paul remarked as he quickly wrote down Slowking's statistics. "Whatever gets you the win, I guess. We'll see if you can make that happen for once."

Conway merely smiled at him. "I trust you fully and completely to lay out an effective strategy for me. I'll be doing the same for you."

The compliments were starting to get to Paul, in a way. He mumbled something unintelligible before turning over to a fresh page. "In the end, it's all up to you," he said tiredly. "Let's just hurry and get through this."

Over the next several minutes, the boys silently worked on each others' in-depth strategies as far as they could go without spoiling or knowing their opponents' team (depending on the case). Surprisingly, at the same time, both looked up to say they were finished, but paused after realizing they were inadvertently speaking in unison. Paul especially felt awkward afterwards, but then he frowned. "How can you be done so quickly? You had more Pokémon to make strategies for than I had to."

"You forget… I am a strategizing _genius_," Conway reminded him, letting out a smirk that honestly creeped Paul out. "Worry not, as I did not rush. It was tricky to formulate a surefire way to win given your choices, but I think you'll find this is literally the best you can do with so many disadvantages weighing you down."

Paul could feel himself twitch in reaction to Conway's attitude. "You sound confident about that," he noted while taking Conway's notebook. "I'll review it eventually before I challenge Candice."

Meanwhile, Conway received his notebook and looked rather eager to read Paul's ideas, knowing they would surely be educated given that he'd battled Maylene already. "And I'll have to review what you've put down pretty soon, given how soon _my_ Gym Battle is. First, though…" He yawned and laid his back against the grass, opting to stargaze like Paul had earlier. "I'd like to take a break, and you're welcome to join me if you want. That was all pretty exhausting, don't you think?"

"I guess," Paul murmured, following suit and lying on the grass once more himself. Interestingly enough, both boys grew silent as they relaxed side-by-side in the backyard and stared at the sky. Neither pair of eyes ever strayed from the stars, but deep within, Paul, at the most random time, he thought, finally felt mildly content. He wasn't sure how or why, but it truly relaxed him to stargaze, even with someone like Conway at his side.

That was the scariest part to him. Paul never minded stargazing in the past, but it never made him feel quite this comfortable. He didn't want to consider that the cause of his warm, safe feelings was due to Conway's presence. Paul was pretty sure he still hated Conway, just like he hated the rest of the world. But that "pretty sure" was once a certainty; how in the world did it get downgraded…?

After briefly checking, Paul was relieved to know Conway's eyes weren't wandering for once; he really was resting. Still, he felt his face and especially his cheeks grow warm, prompting the young, normally-callous trainer to fear that he was blushing. Nonetheless, Paul was determined to deny any part of him that suggested that, perhaps, he was beginning to see Conway as a friend.

He knew he'd sooner die than admit it out loud.

Ironically, Conway felt a little concerned; he actually _doubted_ his friendship with Paul now. He'd been less-tolerant to Paul's nasty personality now than he had been in previous days. It didn't feel right to dismiss it as Conway finally losing his patience with the young man, for he did feel that they were growing closer. But something had been bothering him ever since they went to the hospital earlier in the day…

It worried Conway even more when he thought he figured it out: Reggie. Conway hoped to bond with Paul since both had obvious sibling rivalry problems and dissatisfaction (not to mention a lack of closeness) with their parents. He was certain that was the key to getting Paul to open up. And while it was true to a degree, meeting Reggie and Brandon… but especially Reggie, opened Conway's eyes to a terrible realization.

When it came to equivalents, it was _Paul_ who was the Franny of his family; not Reggie. It was beginning to make Conway a little nauseous just thinking about it, as he never could stand his sister. He really didn't want to start comparing Paul to her, but it was just too easy. It explained why Conway was quicker to lose his patience with Paul now that it became apparent. Worst of all, Conway feared he would stop liking Paul if he couldn't put an end to the associations with his sister.

From now on, he would have to make an extra effort to endure Paul's personality while continuing to be courteous with him. While he had his doubts, Conway decided that he would do his best to resolve this association issue… even if tomorrow would be their last day together. For all they'd been through together, Conway would hate their partnership to end on a bad note.

The conflicting thoughts of the two trainers pressed on silently throughout the night as they were taken in by the starry night.

* * *

Not far away, however, Reggie was having problems of his own. After a hearty dinner and knowing a Gym Battle was imminent the next day, he and Maylene retired to bed relatively early. With Paul gone, Reggie insisted that Maylene sleep in his bed. While hesitant, knowing she and Paul weren't exactly on civil terms, she took up the offer and slept soundly through the night.

For Reggie, his night was going the opposite way: he could only stay half-asleep at best, as strange dreams plagued him for hours, and after a while, his struggles to sleep resulted in him being afflicted with night sweats. He had to change his night shirt three times overall, but it was beginning to look futile as the sweat soaked his sheets and pillow in addition to his clothes.

Often, he would wake up and look at himself in the mirror, just to be sure nothing immediate and serious was happening to him, but all he saw was his weary reflection. Knowing Paul's bedroom was close to his own, Reggie tried his best to keep quiet for Maylene's sake. But as the hours pressed on, it was becoming increasingly difficult to stay silent as he continued to stand up and walk to the drawer to put on a fresh shirt, look at himself in the mirror, and return to bed, only to toss and turn until he soaked another shirt of his, repeating the process.

The creaky wooden floors did nothing to aid his stealth; after so many times, Maylene indeed was picking up on it after a while.

Reggie couldn't begin to describe the visions flashing within his subconscious, but none were pleasant. Much of it involved visions of wintery weather, blood on the snow, and loud and unpleasant noises, followed by flashes of his brother and father. It all went in-and-out too quickly for Reggie to figure out what was going on, but it frightened and confused him.

Eventually, though, it stopped. Reggie ceased his movements in bed and briefly felt at ease. It had taken him almost the entire night to conquer this, but finally, he could…

"_Reggie…"_

It was that voice. The voice Reggie vowed to never forget, especially after his brother had forgotten so quickly and his father refused to acknowledge it…

"_You can't ignore this any longer, dear."_

Reggie's panicked voice slipped out a bit as his eyes snapped open, but he could see that he still remained in his bedroom with no one else present.

"_Close your eyes, Reggie. You won't see me, otherwise."_

He was wide awake, yet he still heard his mother's voice in his head. He knew this couldn't possibly be normal, and he must be in the midst of going insane. But against his better judgment… Reggie closed his eyes.

He could see his mother now, only this time she appeared with her hair tied back as she normally wore it while she was alive, and in casual clothing. Andrea's spirit looked exactly as she did before her death.

"M-mom…?" Reggie felt a sense of familiarity with this scenario. While he was able to remember the incident that nearly killed him, his near-death experience and his first awakening with his violent outburst never came to mind, as if they never happened. Due to that, he was again unfamiliar with this unnatural encounter in spite of his senses. "What are you-… are you really… mom…?"

Andrea's apparent spirit maintained a constant serious and somber expression. _"Yes… and no. I am composed of your memories of me… and your ideal views, as I am contained within your subconscious mind."_

It had been seven years since he last saw his mother. Reggie was breathing hard and deeply, sweating again, but managed to keep his eyes closed. "Is… is it you? Are you putting these awful images in my head…?!"

"_It's hard to explain in a way that would make sense,"_ Andrea's spirit admitted. _"I am not even real… but your recent near-death experience seems to have created me, and in addition, you are now bearing witness to events that have not yet happened…"_

"Not yet…?" Reggie echoed, sounding worried. "Are you saying they _will_ happen?"

Andrea's spirit only shook her head apologetically. _"I am only a creation of your mind; your ideal image of your mother. I'm afraid I cannot tell you more than what I already have. Except that… I love you…"_

Though the idea of seeing his mother in his dreams made Reggie skeptical, he couldn't help but become emotional after hearing that. "I-I… I love you too, mom… so much… a-and so does dad, and Paul!"

Being told that made Andrea's spirit smile, though in a sad way. Behind her, a solid image of a mortally wounded Paul in the snow flashed by briefly, but stayed long enough for Reggie to catch it and all the important details. His reaction was to gasp, but was quick to ask, "Th-that was Paul just now, wasn't it…?! Is… is that going to happen to him?!"

Inconveniently, Andrea's spirit began to fade away. _"Protect your brother, Reggie… I fear for him…"_

"Why?!" Reggie cried out, completely desperate. "What is there to fear?! What am I protecting him from?!"

"_I fear... he will not handle his limitations as well as I did,"_ Andrea's spirit whispered to her oldest son. _"Since I am unable to do anything, it is up to you to keep him safe."_

"His… limitations…" Reggie was afraid to think about what that meant, but continued to cry out for his mother, who was barely visible at this point. "Wait, mom!! Don't leave…!"

"_Be the good big brother I know you are… and protect him. I love you both…"_

She then disappeared. Reggie called for her in despair, but to no avail. He then heard a sudden noise and was jolted awake, abruptly sitting upward on his bed and panting heavily. "Mom…?!"

"… Oh no… Reggie…" It was Maylene who was at the door, looking very worried as déjà vu hit her. "Not again…" She quietly muttered.

"M-Maylene," Reggie breathed out, now looking embarrassed for how he looked and how he obviously must have scared her. "Sorry… I guess I woke you up."

Though she didn't want to come off as rude, Maylene had no choice but to nod to Reggie, confirming his suspicions. "You look like you just went through the wringer, Reggie. Are you feeling okay?" She wasn't sure what she'd do in the event that Reggie went ballistic again, but there seemed to be no indication that he would do so this time… yet.

The last thing Reggie wanted to do was burden Maylene with his crazy imagination. "Y-yeah, everything's fine. Just having a few weird dreams, is all." He looked out the window to see that night had passed and daybreak was right around the corner. "Oh… I didn't realize…"

Maylene nodded, unconvinced that Reggie was actually okay. She knew she was right to suspect that he wasn't completely cured of all his problems yet. "Yeah, it's almost morning. It looks like you didn't get much sleep at all… want me to make you something to help? It's still early enough to get some sleep in," she offered.

"That… won't be necessary," Reggie politely declined, getting out of bed and feeling at his nightshirt, which was, of course, damp with his own perspiration. "There's something I wanted to do this morning, anyway. I might as well stay up…" He went to his drawer to pull out the clothes he'd wear for the day before looking to Maylene again, giving her a sincere smile. "You can go back to bed, though. You'll need as much rest as you can get for your Gym Battle later today."

While Reggie's antics _did_ disturb Maylene for much of the night, she was able to get in a significantly greater amount of sleep than he did. She smiled back at him, shaking her head. "No, I'm fine; really. If you don't mind, I'd like to go with you, Reggie."

This was a surprise for Reggie. "You… you do?"

"If it's okay, that is," Maylene shyly added. "If it's not, I'll stay put…" However, she was intent on keeping an eye on Reggie as much as possible, especially after that recent outburst.

Thankfully for Maylene, Reggie nodded to her in approval. "Sure, you can come with me. Just let me get dressed first, okay?"

"Ditto for me!" Maylene said, sounding enthusiastic. "And of course… your mother's necklace, too." She immediately blushed upon mentioning it; it seemed that it would be her default reaction to the gift she was given last night.

* * *

After they both got into their regular outfits, Reggie and Maylene set out for a destination unknown to Maylene. It seemed to be nothing out of the ordinary, though, as the two mainly used the sidewalks lining the roads of Veilstone City.

As it was the crack of dawn, the city was dead quiet for the most part and a thick fog permeated the area. Reggie was still able to navigate with ease, but was otherwise completely silent during his walk with Maylene. The Gym Leader herself was at a loss for words the entire time, while her subconscious waged war with itself whether to deliberate over Reggie's issues or to make a note of how handsome he looked just at that moment, even with the lack of sleep apparent on his face. Added with the fact that they were walking together in rather close proximity and that Maylene was wearing his mother's engagement necklace, it really did almost feel as if they were a couple, even if Reggie made it clear that it was purely platonic.

Silently, Maylene cursed herself for even having such thoughts about Reggie. She felt she should know better than to look at a young man nearly four years older than her that way, but it was astoundingly hard to resist at this point. At the very least, Maylene could admit to herself that she had a tiny crush on Reggie for a while… but promised herself to not let it get out of control.

Being entrusted with his breeding center while he would be away, however, was what re-ignited the spark. All the events that followed only strengthened her passions, culminating in receiving the necklace, which essentially overloaded her circuits and made her too excited to even speak in coherent sentences, much less control her bodily functions (mainly her blushing).

She tried to convince herself that she would be capable of waiting four years before confronting him with the matter if he didn't find someone else by then. More than anything, Maylene didn't want to trouble Reggie any more than he already was due to his family matters. For an active, passionate fighter like Maylene, though… her feelings proved to be difficult to conceal. She hoped to be able to have it remain a secret until she would be ready. But for now, Maylene found the best way to keep her mind off her feelings for Reggie was to focus on her Gym Battle with Conway. It was all meant to inspire Reggie, of course, but at least it was an extremely platonic move.

Before she knew it, Maylene found herself in the Veilstone Cemetery with Reggie. She remembered the conversation she had with Reggie last night about Brandon's strange actions and knew Reggie must have wanted to check if he was right about his suspicions.

Soon enough, the pair approached the tombstone that was designated Andrea's. A modest memorial, at best, but it was the best the family could manage at the time.

Reggie smiled, as his suspicions were confirmed: fresh magnolia flowers were left at the base of the grave, proving that Brandon had visited before leaving Veilstone City.

"He was here, alright," Reggie finally said, kneeling down to get a close look at the flowers. Maylene remained at his side and chose to bend over instead to inspect the gift Brandon left for his late wife. "I just knew he would be."

"They're beautiful," Maylene remarked in an admiring tone. "You said he'd leave four of them specifically, right…?"

Reggie nodded and picked each individual flower up, one-by-one. "Four to represent every member of our family, of course. One that represents mom herself, naturally… apparently these were her favorite flowers."

Maylene blinked, noticing something about the flowers. "They all seem a little different, though… why is that?"

To that question, Reggie smirked. "Dad likes to be thorough with his representation of the family. The most beautiful flower – this one – " He specifically held out the one he just picked up for Maylene to see more closely. "… It represents mom."

"Understandable," Maylene commented, giggling a little. "And the others?"

"Well…" Reggie picked up the next one, holding it up with the flower that represented Andrea. "This worn-and-torn one… that's dad. It stood the test the time, braved the elements, and still remains healthy and strong."

Just as she adored Reggie, Maylene was beginning to love to learn about his family and the history behind it. "If it weren't a fact that he's so talented and tough, I'd say he has a huge ego," she remarked, smirking.

"Heh…" Reggie had to agree. "He's definitely earned his bragging rights. Now this one…" He picked up the third flower: fully bloomed, but fragile and delicate, yet softer to the touch than the other two. "This one's me. Dad would likely say the reason for that is because I've gone all soft on him and Paul, I'm sure."

"They can say whatever they want, but I like you the way you are," Maylene assured. "You're every bit as beautiful as your mom's flower…" She then flailed a bit after realizing what she just said. "Your flower, that is…!"

Reggie laughed at Maylene's antics, genuinely feeling comforted by her sentiments. "I understood what you meant. Thank you, Maylene."

"Thank _you_ for being a wonderful person," Maylene insisted. "So that little flower over there is Paul?"

Reggie picked up the fourth magnolia and grinned. "Correct. It's the youngest flower, and it hasn't quite fully bloomed yet, if you look closely… clearly, dad sees Paul as a late bloomer… and I'm sure when he blooms, he'll impress us all." The grin faded a little after Reggie honestly thought about what he said. "With any luck, I guess…"

"Hey!" Maylene pointed down at the base of the tombstone. "There's another one!"

"Huh…?" This intrigued and surprised Reggie at the same time. He looked down and indeed saw a fifth magnolia sitting there. As he gently set the other four down, Reggie picked up the new one and examined it, full of curiosity. "Unbelievable… there _is_ a fifth…"

Maylene looked concerned. "Could he have miscounted?"

"That isn't like him," Reggie said, continuing to examine the flower. "Somehow… I think he did this intentionally."

"But… that doesn't make sense," Maylene pointed out. "There are four people in your family. Who else would it be for?"

"It's… tough," Reggie remarked as he analyzed the flower's unique features. "Sturdy… it's a lot like mom's, too. Especially beautiful…"

Maylene crossed her arms, intent on figuring out this mystery. "Ooh… if only he were still here so we could ask him! He's probably long gone on Mt. Coronet now…"

"Likely," Reggie concurred, but now sounded like he figured it out. "I think I know who this represents now. It _is_ related to my mother…"

However, Maylene wasn't following. "Your mom had a relative close to the family or something?"

"I mean that," Reggie said in a deadpan tone, pointing directly at the necklace Maylene wore.

"The necklace…?" Maylene looked down at it and automatically blushed, but the blush deepened when she realized what Reggie meant. "Hang on… you're saying that flower is me?!"

Reggie sighed, still holding the flower. "Sheesh, my dad… honestly. Once he's decided on something, he won't change his mind. Sorry about this, Maylene…"

"O-oh, no need to apologize!" The young Gym Leader assured, waving her hand dismissively. "It's really flattering that Brandon thinks so highly of me… especially since he's addressing me by name and everything now," she added with a laugh. "Don't worry about it, Reggie."

"Glad you're taking the misunderstanding well," Reggie said, sounding mildly relieved, but something still seemed to be on his mind. Regardless, he arranged the four flowers back as they were originally placed on his mother's grave and offered the fifth flower to Maylene. "I'm absolutely certain he meant for this to be you, so why don't you go ahead and take it?"

It took immeasurable amounts of willpower for Maylene to resist the types of responses her hormones would dictate her to do. "Y-you're sure…? I-I mean, maybe you should put it back with the others…"

Reggie shook his head, but gently smiled at Maylene. "Nah; it shouldn't be there under false pretenses. My dad has a tendency to jump the gun a lot… he's not perfect. Still, I think this flower would look much prettier on you, don't you think?"

There was no way Maylene could hold back on blushing now. She almost shied away from Reggie as he stood up, still holding the magnolia flower out for her to accept. He seemed to sense her tension, eerily enough, which prompted him to take action instead before Maylene had the courage to take the flower herself. Reggie carefully arranged it so that the flower became a hair accessory for Maylene, in the manner that a bow or ribbon would. In less than 24 hours, Reggie had given Maylene two special gifts that she would undoubtedly treasure forever.

It was too much; Maylene's heart was ready to burst out of her ribcage and she was redder than a Tamato Berry. Her feet felt as if they were planted to the ground, so Maylene's reaction to Reggie's offering was a small, excited cry before embracing him with both arms.

"Oh, thank you…!" She cried out before burying her face into his chest and holding him tightly against her own body. Needless to say, Reggie didn't expect such an extreme reaction, but he was very calm about it, letting Maylene vent out anything she wanted to say or do without stopping her.

With adoring eyes and a satisfied smile, Maylene looked up to her unrequited crush… no, she was certain it was _love_ now, with an equally loving gesture. "You're the best, Reggie," she gushed.

"You… really give me way too much credit," Reggie humbly said, unsure of what to do at this moment. He hadn't seen this side of Maylene before, and while it didn't necessarily make him feel uncomfortable… it did leave him feeling awkward. In the back of his mind, he was trying to figure out what was going through Brandon's mind when he left that fifth flower behind. He had no idea when he'd even get the opportunity to ask him that, now.

"No way," Maylene said defiantly. "You're beyond underrated! At least they're getting better about it now, but all those years you went unappreciated…!"

"What's passed is past," Reggie calmly told her. He was just then realizing the compromising position they were in; their bodies being firmly pressed together, that is. "We'll work towards a brighter tomorrow together, Maylene; I promise. So, uh…" He looked around nervously. "It's probably close to breakfast time for the Pokémon back at my place," he pointed out. "And for us, too. How about we make a great big breakfast so we can keep your energy up by the time you battle Conway…?"

"Oh…!" Just then, common sense snapped back into Maylene and she immediately let go of Reggie, stepping back a bit. "Reggie, I'm so sorry! That was so out of line for me, and…!"

She then noticed that even though she had released her hold on Reggie… Reggie still maintained a grip on one of her hands. Maylene was surprised that Reggie had done that, and looked up at the young man she fell for and saw the handsomest smile on his face that she'd ever seen.

Reggie, still holding her hand, maintained eye contact with her as he began to walk back home. "Shall we…?"

These mixed signals were driving Maylene insane, but she maintained control of herself to calmly smile back at him and nod, and then follow along. "Let's go!"

The two exited the Cemetery and made their way back home hand-in-hand.

And even though Reggie looked mature and confident about what he was doing… deep within the back of his mind, he was beginning to worry about his actions. Everything was happening so spontaneously, apparently beyond both Reggie _and_ Maylene's control. He again thought of Brandon and his insinuations… he felt he had an idea of what his father was trying to tell him with that fifth magnolia.

Added with the hallucinations of his mother and apparently something endangering Paul's life in the near future, Reggie was surprised he was taking this so well now. He didn't think that, perhaps, Maylene's affections for him were filling a void and easing the prior tensions, knowing he wouldn't be handling them alone anymore.

That was one thing Reggie knew for certain: with Maylene around, he no longer felt lonely.

* * *

Later on that morning, Conway was awakened by a ringing phone. He figured his parents had already gone off to work by now, and his lazy sister certainly wouldn't answer the phone, so he slid down from the top bunk (Paul insisted on taking the bottom last night, feeling his host would be less apt to be creepy around him from above than below, where he could more easily freak him out), grabbed his glasses and put them on, and rushed over to the phone.

"Ah- hello…?" Conway said after picking it up, sounding a little out of breath.

"Good morning, sir," a young lady's voice greeted him. "May I ask if Conway is available…?"

"Uh…" Conway immediately looked worried, as he never got telephone calls meant for himself. "S-speaking," he muttered cautiously.

"Ah, Conway!" The lady sounded pleased. "Excellent. I'm calling on behalf of the Canalave City Library in regards to some books you checked out a few days ago."

Now, Conway was terrified. He knew this had to be about the Regigigas book he had now given to Brandon, meaning it was certain not to return to the library anytime soon. "I-I'm really sorry about the Regigigas book, if that's what this is about!" He wailed. "I checked it out for a friend and I had _no_ idea at the time that he never intended to allow it to come back! Then Pyramid King Brandon came by and took it, and he'll be keeping it way beyond its due date for sure… I-I'm sure this all just sounds like a load of crock, doesn't it?"

"Not at all," the lady casually said. "We're actually calling to apologize to you, for it was our fault that Pyramid King Brandon was able to track you down in the first place. One of our patrons accidentally broke the code of honor while being interrogated by that man and gave out all of your information. We understand that the Frontier Brain is using that particular book for a good cause, so please don't worry about returning it by its due date."

It almost sounded too good to be true. Relieved beyond belief, Conway sunk down into his computer chair while holding the phone, looking stunned. "S-so you're… you're not going to punish me…?"

There was a chipper-sounding giggle on the other end of the phone. "Of course not! What happened was certainly beyond your control, so we aren't blaming you at all. In fact, to express how sorry we are that such misfortune befell you, we're allowing you to keep the other books you checked out that same night, free of charge."

"O-oh my…" Conway was speechless. "I… I don't know what to say… I-I mean, the other books I checked out are also pretty rare…"

"Rare, but replaceable," the lady amended. "Please, accept our apology. We'll be sure that a situation like this will not happen again."

To Conway, this was like a dream come true. His troubles with the library were plaguing him in the back of his mind every day after Paul informed him of his intentions, and the anxiety increased tenfold after Brandon took the book away to parts unknown in Sinnoh. In fact, this was something Conway had been holding against Paul and hadn't quite forgiven him for yet.

Still, he smiled and sounded immensely grateful. "I-it's okay, really! I mean, you had to deal with Brandon just like I did… I know firsthand how scary that guy can be. I don't blame you for cracking. He's a guy who won't stop until he gets what he wants… but I know he's putting that book to good use and he'll take care of it for sure."

"Good to know," the lady said, sounding relieved. "Well, enjoy your books, Conway. Despite what has happened, I hope we will do business with you again soon."

"Oh, you can count on it!" Conway assured, sounding confident. "No other library's been cool enough to give me free books! Thank you, really…"

"Thank _you_ for accepting our apology. Have a good day, Conway."

"You too!" Conway said in kind. He then hung up the phone and sighed happily, looking as if a great weight had been lifted off his shoulders. Due to the Regigigas ordeal and the strategizing from last night, Conway was afraid he wouldn't be able to enjoy the books he'd checked out for himself, but now he could take his time and read them whenever he wanted. That was certainly a fantastic way to start the day.

Conway looked to a nearby clock, seeing that it was an hour and a half before noon; no need to go back to sleep. He fondly looked to the still-sleeping Paul in his bed before smirking. "Hey, Paul! Are you gonna sleep the whole day away again? You're not sick anymore, so you can't use that as an excuse!"

That was a voice loud enough to jolt Paul out of his slumber. Immediately, he growled and looked over to the cheery, wide-awake Conway. "What time is it?" He asked expectantly.

"About 10:30," Conway reported. "We ought to be getting up and preparing ourselves for what's ahead today."

He was reluctant, but Paul forced himself to sit up from the bed, though he slumped over and clearly would have preferred another hour or two of sleep right now. "Fine…"

"You never did get washed up last night," Conway pointed out. "How about you get that out of the way now while I make breakfast? It'll at least wake you up."

Paul narrowed his eyes at Conway as he was reminded of what he failed to do last night. "If you recall, Conway, I didn't take a shower last night because our little 'break' ended up putting both of us to sleep in your backyard for a good deal of the night."

"Aha, yeah…" Conway was a little embarrassed that he let himself fall asleep outside for so long, but at least Paul was guilty of the same thing… plus, Conway had been the one to wake up first, realize what had happened, and awaken Paul so they could both retire to actual beds. "Sorry about that. At least we didn't spend the entire night outside, right?"

It was a good thing this was the last day he would have to deal with Conway, Paul thought. After watching the Gym Battle, which he expected to be full of nothing but total and utter failure, Paul decided he would immediately be on his way to Snowpoint City and hopefully make it across a few towns before having to turn in for the night. He would make it clear to Conway that their partnership would end as of today, and finally he would have his peaceful solitude back. Best of all, he would no wonder have to worry about coming to like that guy and tolerate his company. It was honestly hard to stomach; the idea of _Conway_ of all people making him soft.

"Honestly, you should be above that kind of thing," Paul criticized, but decided to ease off on him from there, considering he would soon be free of his elder companion. "I expect whatever you plan on making is good enough to make up for that. Now, where's your bathroom?"

Conway blinked, expecting more insults to come out of his mouth, but blankly pointed out his doorway. "Just take a left after you leave this room and go down the hallway. It'll be the first door you come across on the right. I was going to ask if you wanted anything in particular for breakfast, though…"

"Whatever you make, I'm sure I'll be fine with it," Paul assured, trying to sound as neutral as possible in tone. He didn't want to give Conway the idea that he was thrilled with dinner last night, though Paul couldn't deny to himself that Conway's cooking was very exceptional for his age; almost on par with Reggie's. "Make whatever you want and I'll come down to eat when I get dressed. Since you insist on waking up this early, I expect we'll be heading to my house after we're done eating."

Conway laughed a bit, feeling awkward just then. "No preference, huh? Alright, sure… we can head off after breakfast if you want."

Paul paused before gathering his belongings and exiting Conway's bedroom. "I expect you'll be reading through the strategy plan I made, considering you had no time to do so last night." He tried his best to sound neutral about that as well… Paul really didn't want Conway to think he cared that much about having his ideas considered. He just… obviously wanted to make sure he could give Conway ideas that would make the Gym Battle slightly less horrible than he expected it to be. Of course.

"I'll be reviewing it thoroughly while we eat!" Conway assured him. While Paul was brought up to understand that it was rude to eat at the table… he remembered Conway's family went against practically every aspect representing that of a normal one. Knowing that now, Paul honestly couldn't be surprised at the oddities any longer.

"I won't run into your family on the way to your bathroom, will I?" Paul asked Conway, sounding paranoid. It relieved him a bit when Conway happily shook his head.

"Nah, mom and dad left for work hours ago. Franny should still be in bed, considering I've never once seen her up before noon for as long as I can remember," he explained. "She's terribly lazy, you see."

Paul nodded and looked away. "Good. Make sure you have _something_ ready by the time I come to the kitchen." With that, he opened Conway's door and promptly left in search of the bathroom. Conway was the slightest bit put-off by Paul's nastiness, but decided morning grumpiness must have had something to do with it.

After giving Paul a chance to make some distance, Conway stood up and made his way for the kitchen. "Terribly impatient as always… at least I see now where he gets it from," Conway mused, chuckling to himself.

* * *

Things were decidedly awkward between Reggie and Maylene after returning from the Cemetery. The two barely spoke at all throughout breakfast and separated after their meal, with Maylene training outside in the backyard with Lucario to warm up for her Gym Battle and Reggie tending to the Pokémon, though he minded his still-injured hand and worked as lightly as he could while still getting the job done. No doubt the Pokémon were happy to see their caretaker back so soon, though it pained Reggie knowing he would have to be about his way again in order to train in preparation for his battle with his father. At least this time, Reggie knew he could train at his own pace and not have to worry about being dragged off to battle before he was ready. He would still have to find a more effective way of training that wasn't as lenient as his yet not as brutal as his brother's, but he trusted Maylene and Conway to give him some inspiration that would ultimately help him find out what his optimal method of training would be.

Reggie smirked to himself as he heard minor explosions from his backyard, knowing Lucario wasn't giving Maylene an easy time out there. He knew they would both put their best effort forward for his sake, and it was nice to feel so highly-valued. Though he tried his best, Reggie failed to hold back a yawn as his body reminded him that he got virtually no sleep at all last night. He tried his best to keep moving, hoping the adrenaline would keep him going (and it did), but even taking a short moment of a break brought his fatigue back to the fore. In all honesty, he hoped this wouldn't become an issue when he would have to sit down and watch the Gym Battle.

As he stepped out of the house via the front door in order to pick up the newspaper he'd forgotten about until just then, he looked ahead toward the streets to see his little brother and Maylene's challenger headed towards the his direction in the distance. At first, seeing Paul made Reggie freeze up as abrupt memories of the nightmares he had last night returned with a vengeance. He remembered hearing his late mother's voice warning him about Paul's wellbeing for some reason, and he recalled the horrific visuals perfectly.

Still… dreams _were_ dreams. Reggie had to remember he'd just gotten out of the hospital; perhaps these were merely remnants of the psychosis, or side-effects from the treatment he received. Either way, he didn't want to darken the mood by bringing any of this up to either Conway _or_ Maylene, and especially not Paul. Instead, he did what he did best: smile in spite of his inner conflict and looked to the backyard where Maylene and Lucario continued to intensively train.

"Maylene…!" Reggie called out, which quickly got her attention. "Your challenger's arrived!"

"As has the referee," said another voice, decidedly male. Reggie turned around to see Connally, the Black Belt patron of Veilstone Gym, coming his way from the side.

Reggie smirked, pleased to see all was going well in a timely fashion. "Connally! Good timing!" He greeted. "Nice to see you again. And really, thanks for helping out around here while Maylene was looking after me at the hospital. I appreciate it."

"It was my pleasure," Connally assured. "A change of scenery was beneficial for me as well, considering how much work we've put into redesigning the Gym."

"I bet," Reggie said with a laugh. "How close are you guys to finishing up the renovations?"

Connally shook his head. "It'll still be a while yet. We're immensely grateful for you allowing our Gym Leader to use your backyard as a temporary replacement in the meantime."

"Anytime," Reggie humbly dismissed. "It's an honor to be able to help you guys out."

"Oh, Connally…!" Maylene shouted as she ran over to where Reggie and her pupil were, with Lucario not far behind her. "Good; you're here! Looks like we can start the Gym Battle sooner than I expected."

"It's a pleasure to see you again, Maylene," Connally assured. "You're well-missed at the Gym even though we're in the midst of renovating it. Regardless, we're pleased you found a way to work around this setback and-…" He paused as he noticed a Shell Bell necklace around her neck and a peculiar magnolia in her hair. After eyeing Reggie for a split-second, he smiled knowingly. "It certainly seems you've settled in well and made yourself at home."

Maylene blinked, not getting the meaning behind what he said. "Huh…?" Reggie just looked awkward meanwhile as Conway and Paul finally arrived and joined them. Their presence shattered the current conversation.

"Glad you made it, Conway," Reggie said, walking over to the boys. "I can't wait to see your battle." He then looked over to Paul. "So, did you have a fun time spending the night with him?"

"I don't think it's possible for me to 'have fun', especially with Conway around," Paul complained bitterly. He was _still_ sour at his brother for making him spend the night there in the first place. "He's so rich, it's actually painful. His personal bathroom alone is so loaded; you'd think it belonged to a girl."

Conway simply huffed at that remark. "There's no shame in taking pride in your appearance, Paul. It isn't _feminine_ in the least and it's what the girls like in their men."

"Calling you a man is like calling a Magikarp a Magmortar," Paul countered.

"Brandon was right," Maylene cut in, smiling. "You two really _are_ like an old married couple." Unable to resist and believing it to be true, Reggie and Connally started laughing. Conway just shied away and blushed while Paul glared furiously at Maylene and the others.

His fists shook a little and Paul looked like he was about to blow up at Maylene, but calmed himself at the last second, though he still looked heavily displeased with his company. "Not that anything you say _matters_, Maylene…" He said lowly. "But maybe you should go ahead and get your Gym Battle underway. After I watch you and Conway make even _bigger_ fools of yourselves, I'm leaving right away for Snowpoint City. _By myself_," he clarified, looking right at the still-humbled Conway, who nodded in understanding.

The second Paul mentioned Snowpoint City, the terrible image Reggie had dreamt about suddenly made sense. It coincided perfectly with what his "mother" was warning him about. He looked shocked for a moment, but settled into a very serious look, which no one else took notice to.

"In that case, let's get started!" Maylene announced. "You ready to go, Conway?"

"Ah- of course!" Conway replied, sounding a little nervous. "Let's begin!" He had read through Paul's strategy and was ready to put it to good use with his own little flair.

Everyone approached the backyard and took their positions: Reggie and Paul sat on a couple of crates set out to serve as seats for the two. Conway and Maylene faced each other from a long distance across the lawn. In the distance between them stood Connally, naturally some bit away from what would normally be a designated field, although there were no lines to define such a thing. It was terribly informal for a Gym Battle, but still legal regardless.

"Our Veilstone City Gym Battle shall now commence!" Connally shouted out loud. "To my left is the challenger, Veilstone City's own… Conway!"

Conway smirked, already bringing out his first Pokéball. "Present," he calmly announced.

Connally looked the other way. "And to my right is the Veilstone City Gym Leader, Maylene!"

Maylene returned the smug look, also taking out her first Pokéball. "Ready when you are…!"

As the brothers watched, Paul finally noticed something. "Why is Maylene wearing a flower in her hair…?" He asked, staring at her confusedly.

Reggie laughed nervously at Paul while carefully handling their mother's necklace, which Maylene entrusted to him for safekeeping while she went off to do battle. "Uh, she just found it while training out here this morning," he lied, hoping Paul would buy it. "She thought it was cute, so she decided to wear it…"

"Magnolias don't naturally grow around here," Paul told him, evidently _not_ buying the lie. Reggie could at least take solace in the fact that Paul would never be able to guess where they were _actually_ from, considering he never knew what his mother's favorite flower was and wouldn't in a million years guess that Brandon would have left that flower, amongst others, at her final resting place.

"Someone might've dropped it…?" Reggie suggested, sounding like he was obviously caught in his lie.

"In our _backyard?_" Paul asked, finding that possibility hard to believe.

Reggie's lack of sleep was severely impairing his judgment. He decided to just keep quiet for now before he inadvertently blew his own cover. When Paul realized that Reggie had given up on the conversation, he disapprovingly crossed his arms and grumbled to himself.

"For this battle, both the challenger and the Gym Leader will use three Pokémon each!" Connally continued. "The victor will be determined when either side's three Pokémon are all defeated! Only the challenger may substitute Pokémon during the battle!" He looked to Conway just then. "The battle shall commence when the challenger makes the first move!"

The lenses of Conway's glasses gleamed in the sunlight as the wearer of them looked eager about this. "Just the way I wanted it. Alright, then!" He pressed the button on his Pokéball and tossed it out to the field. "Come forth, Aggron!"

With a mighty roar, the Iron Head Pokémon indeed came forth and landed on the field with a thunderous thud, given its extremely heavy weight of nearly eight-hundred pounds. While it stood tall and ominously, everyone but Paul couldn't help but gape at Conway's first choice for battle.

"Aggron…?" Maylene muttered to herself. "But isn't Aggron…?"

"Why's he sending out a Pokémon that has a double-weakness to Maylene's specialty type?" Reggie inquired, trying to figure out the logic behind this.

Paul merely shrugged. "I told him it was a stupid idea, but I couldn't talk him out of it."

As Conway looked on deviously with his first choice, Maylene began to show her determined gesture. "He isn't a naïve kind of guy," she noted (still to herself). "Obviously, he's got some kind of trick up his sleeve…" She then spoke out loudly so everyone could hear her. "Interesting first choice, Conway! Now, let me respond…!" The young Gym Leader enlarged her Pokéball and sent out her first Pokémon. "Come on out, Machoke!"

Though significantly smaller, the Superpower Pokémon came out with full confidence, posing on the field as it eyed the opponent.

With the first two Pokémon now on the field, Connally threw his arms up. "Now, battle begin…!"

"Pure Fighting," Conway acknowledged, looking skeptical. "Guess I may not be able to prolong this first round very well after all… we'll just have to see how well you can take Machoke's hits, Aggron!" He then pointed dramatically to his Pokémon. "Let's prepare for the onslaught with Iron Defense!"

A subtle blue aura covered the entirety of Aggron's body as it bulked up its defensive capabilities, expecting a full frontal attack from Maylene and Machoke.

"Let's see how big of a dent we can make, Machoke!" Maylene shouted. "Go for it with Cross Chop!"

With a more intense glow on only its arms, Machoke formed a cross and rushed at Aggron to crash against its steely body with the force of both arms at once. Aggron roared out in pain in spite of its attempts to boost its defense, but was able to hang on. Nonetheless, Machoke had inflicted significant damage to its opponent.

"Your endurance is admirable, Aggron!" Conway complimented. "Let's enhance it! Iron Defense again!"

As the blue glow intensified on Aggron, Maylene was confused. "He isn't attacking even though Machoke's so close now…?" She began to look serious, as she was completely unsure if Conway didn't know what he was doing or if he was leading her into a giant trap. Nonetheless, it was still her move. "If he won't do anything, let's show him we mean business, Machoke!" She shouted out. "Use Focus Punch!"

With a fist burning with a blinding white light, Machoke, still in close proximity to Aggron (who stood still, doing nothing but preparing for the next blow), hit its target dead-on with a devastating blow. This was forceful enough to send the extremely large and heavy Pokémon skidding back a few feet. Aggron could no longer stand sturdy; it was struggling to even remain standing at all, but still managed to do so and remain in the game. It was on borrowed time now, though, and Conway knew it was time to act now.

"You're going to regret using such a powerful move, Maylene," Conway warned. "Aggron, it's time to retaliate! Counter!"

"N-no!!" Maylene cried out. "Machoke, get out of there…!!"

Machoke tried, though was slightly tired out from forcing a beast of nearly eight-hundred pounds back several feet. It was met with a rampaging Aggron, glowing reddish-orange with anger and throwing out its _own_ Focus Punch – except this one was exceptionally more powerful and fearsome.

A single punch from Aggron sent Machoke flying back to its side of the field at blinding speed. Maylene gasped as Machoke zoomed past her and hit a boulder in the distance, making it practically explode. Due to how far it was sent out, no one knew if Machoke was able to continue battling or not. Maylene was almost too afraid to go over there and find out. Both Reggie and Paul were staring at the scene wide-eyed, as it was rare to see such raw power thrown out on the battlefield. Conway was especially impressed with the results.

"Guess we don't know our own strength…" Conway figured, sounding awed. "Focus Punch's power doubled _would_ be massive, though… and that's what Counter's all about."

Reggie looked to Paul, just realizing something. "You know, Paul… you _could've_ had something like this if you were just a little more patient."

Paul grumbled and refused to look at Reggie, instead preferring to concentrate on the battle. "Don't remind me."

"You know you still could…" Reggie innocently reminded. "Lairon's missed you."

"Lairon needs to stop being so emotional," Paul rebutted. "That's one reason of many why I left it with you in the first place. If it wants to be an Aggron like Conway's, it needs to stop being so soft."

"Wait…! I can see something!!" Maylene cried out, pointing to the distance. Indeed, everyone was witness to a _severely_ battered and bruised Machoke hobbling its way back to the battling site. All those present were amazed to see Machoke still conscious _and_ able to walk a good distance on its own after taking such a terrible blow. "Machoke, you're alright…!"

Connally nodded at this. "Machoke is still able to battle, meaning this match continues!"

Maylene looked to Machoke worriedly. "Machoke, can you really…?"

In spite of its weak state, Machoke turned to Maylene and nodded, posed and ready to continue the fight. Conway now looked serious, and was mildly disappointed that such a devastating blow did not end the battle.

"The move is yours, Maylene," Conway offered. "I insist."

"Try to be careful, Machoke," Maylene uttered to her Pokémon before refocusing her attention to her opponents. "Alright, then! Machoke, let's take up the offer and bring along a Brick Break!"

What Maylene didn't know was that Conway was familiar with this move's execution thanks to watching Weavile spam the move during Paul's battle with Byron. So while Machoke tiredly ran and jumped at Aggron, prepared to karate-chop the Iron Head Pokémon, Conway was quick to act.

"Counter with Thunder Wave!" Conway commanded.

A weak electric charge generated from Aggron's claw. Just as Machoke's hand was about to make contact with Aggron, the opponent interfered with its own. The charge passed from Aggron to Machoke and, as a result, Machoke was completely immersed within a static discharge. Aggron took some damage from the Brick Break attack, though only through the hand, and it wasn't enough to fell the much larger creature.

Machoke, meanwhile, was dealing with a nasty case of paralysis.

Maylene was beginning to doubt her chances of winning this particular match, but remembered that it was her self-doubt that put her into her slump and depression in the first place all those months ago before Dawn aided her. Now Reggie was the one immersed in self-doubt and needed inspiration in order to get his head in the game. She simply cared too much for him to let him down now.

"You can do it, Machoke!!" She hollered. "Break through it and use Focus Punch! With all the strength you have left…!"

Conway was taken by surprise when Machoke was actually able to overcome the paralysis handicap and charge right for Aggron. Before he could even shout the command for Outrage, Machoke landed a critical hit right at the center of Aggron's chest. Skidding back even further than before, it was finally too much for Aggron to take. After a moment or two of twitching from the sting of the punch, Aggron fell to the ground, officially knocked out.

"Gah…!" Conway cried out. "Aggron!"

"Aggron is unable to battle!" Connally announced, making it official. "Machoke is the winner!"

Paul couldn't help but smile a little as he witnessed Conway's anguish over his fallen Aggron. Begrudgingly, though, he had to admit… "He lasted much longer than I thought he would with Aggron. Still, obviously it's not as great as you made it out to be, Reggie. Maybe I was right not to waste my time."

"It wouldn't… waste time…" Reggie murmured, suddenly having slumped over with his eyelids feeling heavy. "Against… odds…"

As Paul was unaware of Reggie's sleeping troubles from the previous night, he grew a little concerned when he saw his older brother on the verge of passing out. "Reggie…?" Though his brother remained awake, there was no response.

Meanwhile, Conway sighed and returned Aggron to its Pokéball. "All things considered, Aggron, you did a really good job. Too bad you couldn't Outrage that Machoke… but I think you really made a difference." He put Aggron's Pokéball away and took out his next one. "We won't let your sacrifice go to waste, Aggron!"

"I was right to suspect you were leading me into a trap!" Maylene called out to him. "I must commend you for making good use of a Pokémon that's doubly weak to mine; I thought this wouldn't last long at all, but you really had me worried that I might lose for a second there!"

Conway grinned while acknowledging the compliments. "You're much too kind." Again, his glasses gleamed against the sunlight. "Your Machoke's about out of gas itself, though. Now it's time for _me_ to get serious…" The next Pokéball was thrown out, revealing Conway's next Pokémon. "Come forth, Heracross…!"

As Heracross came to the field, fully prepared for battle, Paul scoffed over at the peanut gallery. "_Really_, Conway… you don't consider a double-powered Focus Punch serious?" He shook his head, expecting Reggie to retort in Conway's defense, yet still heard nothing. This was becoming a bit unsettling for him.

"Hm…" Maylene smirked, liking the idea of this match-up. "Bug and Fighting, huh? Now _this_ makes a lot more sense!"

"Let's see who _fights_ best then, shall we?" Conway offered her. Maylene silently nodded in response. "The lady's ready to start round two, Heracross," Conway confirmed to his Pokémon. Heracross looked back and nodded to its trainer. "Let's go, then! Aerial Ace!"

"Don't let Heracross get started!" Maylene shouted, not willing to let Machoke be hit by the super-effective move that would lay a guaranteed hit for Heracross. "Seismic Toss!"

Just as Heracross was about to ascend straight into the air, both it and its trainer were shocked to see Machoke reach Heracross first, wrapping its arms around the Single Horn Pokémon and weighing it down, making it therefore unable to initiate Aerial Ace. With ease, Machoke held up Heracross with both arms and jumped up high, spinning as it did so. Once it reached a certain altitude, it threw Heracross even higher up before descending, leaving Heracross helpless as it was forcefully sent up several hundred feet above ground. Machoke landed well before Heracross even started to fall. When it did so, however, the rate at which it fell was very quickly, dropping like a rock.

Conway looked nervous, uncertain that Heracross would even be able to hear him, but frowned… as he did have an idea. He knew he would have to wait until Heracross was in hearing range, though, meaning it might be too late for Heracross to even recover by the time it would be able to hear its trainer's command.

Nonetheless, Conway carefully watched his Pokémon plummet towards the ground, waiting until he knew Heracross would be able to heed the call. "You're airborne, Heracross!" He shouted. "Try Aerial Ace again before you hit the ground!"

Heracross wearily looked towards its trainer, only barely registering the command before crashing into the ground, making a crater as it did so. Conway's uneasiness increased tenfold upon seeing his plan fail, and now _his_ self-doubt was starting to kick in.

In disapproval, Paul shook his head. "Typical. I should've figured his Heracross isn't good enough for my strategy. Conway's never looked this pathetic before."

"Ah! Heracross!" Conway shouted in relief, seeing Heracross weakly stand up after such a fall. "You're alright…!" Even though his plan had failed, there was another way he could turn this completely around on Machoke, and this was something Conway was certain would work out. "Get ready and use Revenge!"

"What…?!" Maylene was fearful for another situation like Aggron and Counter, knowing Revenge worked in a similar way, though to a lesser degree. "No way…! Machoke, cut it off and use Brick Break!"

Machoke's hand glowed again to do so, but Heracross was simply too fast as it flew in, horn-first, to strike its opponent. Nearly speared, as it were, Machoke was brutally thrown back with amazing power and fell before Maylene, now finally knocked out. As an initial reaction, Maylene cried out. "Oh no…!"

"Machoke is unable to battle!" Connally yelled out. "Heracross is the winner!"

"Hah! No way!" Conway gasped out in relief, having accomplished his first victory within the Gym Battle challenge. It was far from over, but he was ecstatic, as he was beginning to doubt he'd be incapable of taking any of Maylene's Pokémon out if they were going to be as tough as Machoke.

Maylene smiled down at Machoke before returning it to its Pokéball. "You stuck it out for a long time… I really appreciate that, Machoke. Rest well, my friend." With Machoke returned, Maylene got her second Pokéball ready to throw at a moment's notice. "Is it me, or am I detecting a pattern here, Conway?" She asked her challenger, smirking.

Conway only shrugged, however. "They do say the best offense is a good defense… but if moves like Revenge and Counter are anything to go by, I imagine the reverse is true as well."

Meanwhile, Paul bitterly refused to take Maylene's initial victory as a sign of improvement, regardless of how much better she fared against Conway compared to himself. "What's wrong, Reggie? You're not going to brag about how 'great' she is?" Ever since Conway's remark last night in regards to Reggie giving the young Gym Leader their mother's Shell Bell, Paul had been paranoid that his nerdy companion might actually be _right_ in the assumption that there was more between those two than mere friendship. It didn't help that he'd already witnessed on several occasions how accurate Conway's observations were most of the time.

Still, there was no response from his brother. "What's _with_ you today?" Paul asked, put off with the silence. When his question was met with even more silence, Paul decided enough was enough. He leaned over and waved his hand in front of Reggie's face, hoping to get his attention. However, Reggie did not react. Paul then noticed his eyes were practically closed now, and after a disapproving grunt, he loudly brought his hands together while they were still in his brother's face. "Reggie!"

With the loud clapping noise that came from Paul's hands colliding, Reggie's eyes snapped open. The elder brother wailed at the suddenness of the sound and freaked out when he saw a pair of hands mere inches from his face. Completely unaware of his surroundings, Reggie scooted back away… only to fall off the crate he sat upon and flat on his back. Paul flinched momentarily at the harsh landing, but quickly looked unsympathetic for what happened.

"They're battling for _your_ stupid sake, you know!" Paul scolded, standing over him. "How are you going to be inspired if you sleep through the whole thing?!"

Maylene heard Paul's shouting just before she was about to send out her next Pokémon. She paused before the ball escaped her hand and looked over to where Paul and Reggie were. Conway was also disturbed by the sudden loudness and did the same as his opponent. Both were rather displeased to see Paul standing over a fallen Reggie as he harshly criticized him.

"Hey, what's going on over there?!" Maylene called out, sounding angry that Paul would be so insensitive. "For goodness' sake, Paul! Could you be more heartless?!"

It just infuriated Paul to be wrongly accused by someone he couldn't stand. He glared over in her direction. "He's practically _sleeping_ through this Gym Battle! You know, the battle you two are having right now that's supposed to _help_ him?!"

"Sleeping?" Conway inquired, notably curious about the situation. "But it's still early in the afternoon… how could Reggie be tired?"

"Oh no…" Maylene muttered, hoping this kind of thing _wouldn't_ happen… at least not now, of all times. Still, she remained firm. "Paul, he hardly got any sleep last night! Lay off him, already!"

Paul's anger didn't fade, for he assumed the worst possible incident (in his mind) for why that would be the case. "That so, huh?" He glared even more furiously down at Reggie, who was still shocked that he was on the verge of passing out at such a time as this. It was then that Paul noticed his mother's Shell Bell had slid off onto the ground after Reggie fell. Thankfully, it was in no way harmed, but Paul honestly didn't care for the condition of the necklace. Paul picked it up, grasping the string of pearls tightly before holding it over his brother. "Now why would _that_ ever be the case, Reggie?! You've never said anything about having insomnia. Surely it wouldn't have a thing to do with why you kicked me out last night, would it?!"

Instead of denying the false accusation or even giving Paul an answer, Reggie's immediate reaction was to abruptly sit up and snatch the necklace away from his careless younger brother. "G-give that back…! Before you break it!!" Since Paul did not expect this, Reggie succeeded.

This reaction did not help matters in the least, however. "Well, that pretty much says it all, doesn't it?" Paul assumed, turning away from Reggie. "You disgust me. I don't even want to stick around to see how this ends, now." He was about to walk away, but nearly tripped after Reggie, who was still on the ground, grabbed the fabric of his pants. Had Paul not caught himself in time, that would have been a humiliating spectacle. In response, he growled and looked back at his brother. "Will you let go?! I'm not interested in your excuses!"

"No, you're going to _listen_ to me!" Reggie shouted back, now equally as enraged as Paul. "It's true I shouldn't have fallen asleep, but you're totally out of line _again!_ We're gonna have to have a little talk after this battle is over, because there's a _lot_ I need to get off my chest before you run off to Snowpoint City!" Indeed, seeing his mother's Shell Bell reminded Reggie of why exactly he couldn't sleep last night. Much as he wanted to stop Paul from going to Snowpoint City altogether and find some other Gym to earn his next badge at, Reggie knew it was never easy to change his brother's mind on anything once he decided on a specific course of action. But despite that, the odds didn't stop Reggie from wanting to try.

"I have a feeling I've already guessed what you're going to tell me," Paul said, lowly growling. "And I'd rather not have to think about it more than I already have, because I already feel like kicking you as hard as I can."

Even for quarrelling brothers, Reggie found that to be unbelievably brutal. "You have no idea what you're even saying, you know!"

"No, I'm pretty sure I want to kick you around for a few hours," Paul rebutted. "Especially since society etiquette prevents me from doing it to _girls_." Obviously, he meant Maylene, and Reggie knew it. Of course, he jumped to her defense as he stood up and towered over his little brother.

"Leave Maylene out of this!" Reggie furiously insisted. "Obviously, nothing I said to you last night sunk in! That's the only way I can see how you'd be acting like a complete brat over nothing!"

Despite the height difference, Paul didn't hesitate to glare up at Reggie. "Prove me wrong then, liar! Oh, wait. That's right… you _can't_. I'm just supposed to take your word for it like I always have to. I can't imagine what else you've been lying to me about!"

While the two growled at each other, finally some intervention came in the form of Maylene, who grabbed Reggie by his hair to pull him away from Paul, and Conway, who snagged one of Paul's arms and yanked him away from Reggie.

"Honestly, you two," Maylene scolded. "You're not solving a thing by senselessly yelling at each other!" She expected this sort of behavior out of Paul, but _not_ Reggie. Seeing him mirror his younger brother's attitude was only bringing back bad memories for her; specifically when Reggie went ballistic during his first day in the hospital. She was afraid this was going to eventually resurface, and now that fear was confirmed. He hadn't actually resorted to physical violence at this point, but the look on Reggie's face certainly made it look like he wanted to damage Paul just as much as Paul wanted to damage him.

"Seriously, Paul, grow up," Conway urged, not at all impressed with Paul's behavior, either. "You're jumping to conclusions way too fast, and if you don't want to stay and watch the Gym Battle for your brother's sake, then at least watch it for _my_ sake, please? Or better yet, your strategy's?"

Paul easily freed himself from Conway's grasp, but stayed put. "Whichever way the wind blows, you're both still pathetic losers. This is a waste of my time."

"Actually, you'll technically be a loser if I lose as well," Conway pointed out, but Paul only rolled his eyes.

"And how do you figure that?"

"I'm under _your_ strategy," Conway reminded. "True, I'm putting my own spin on it, but this is largely influenced by you. And seeing as you've already won against Maylene, it'll reflect poorly on you if your strategy can't beat out hers."

As Conway smirked, having defeated Paul in yet another battle of logic, the latter huffed in frustration and went back to his seat. "Fine. See if you can impress me, then, because so far you're proving to be every bit the amateur I figured you'd be."

"Well, gee… it _is_ my first Gym Battle; cut me a little slack," Conway said in his own defense. "I think I'll be able to concentrate better if I know you and your brother can get through this without killing each other, though."

"As will I, _Reggie_," Maylene concurred, making sure Reggie wasn't forgotten in this equation. "For goodness' sake, separate if you two can't sit together and be civil."

Reggie was still glaring at Paul, but he heeded Maylene's words. "Fine; I'll just move, then. But I'm still going to speak with you privately after this is over and _before_ you leave, Paul." He tried to pick his crate up, but was so angry that he'd forgotten that his hand was still broken… and therefore, trying to use it to lift anything only resulted in a great deal of pain. He sharply pulled back and groaned, regretting that he could be angry enough to actually forget that. In response to this, Paul sighed in exasperation and stood up.

"For the love of-… _I'll_ just move," he said, picking up his crate. He passed by Reggie (who was still reeling in pain) and set the crate back on the ground a few yards away from his brother's. Paul sat back down and quickly looked impatient. "Alright, issue resolved. Can you two finish up now?"

Reggie followed suit, taking a seat, but couldn't quite get himself to calm down. He knew exactly what he was being accused of, and he hated how Paul refused to see it any other way than his own. Seeing the two separated and no longer feuding, however, Conway and Maylene looked to each other with uncertainty.

"Guess we'll just have to trust them," Conway figured. "Whatever the case, Reggie's certainly awake now, so hopefully he'll be paying attention to us rather than Paul."

Maylene nodded after briefly looking back to Reggie. "Yeah… let's do our best to get his mind off this. I guess I still need to send out my next Pokémon."

"Indeed," Conway affirmed while walking his way back to his side of the field, where Heracross stood by. "Let's make this one count!"

Maylene smiled nervously at her opponent as she returned to her side of the field and looked apologetically to Connally. "Sorry about the hold-up…"

"No need to apologize," Connally assured. "It takes great courage to step into these disputes and nullify them. Now, let's start the third match!"

"Right!" Maylene refocused on the battlefield and finally threw her next Pokéball. "Let's do this, Meditite!"

The next match was underway, and Conway was pleasantly surprised to see that his next match was against a dual-typed Pokémon of Fighting and Psychic. "How amusing… you're certain you're going with that one?"

"You'd be mistaken to underestimate Meditite," Maylene warned. "You're dealing with pure power."

"I'll be the judge of that!" Conway responded. "Heracross, go over there and give Meditite a little taste of Megahorn!"

Heracross was quick to follow orders as its horn powered up, signified with a bright glow surrounding the horn. As it inched closer and closer to Meditite, Maylene was ready for it.

"Meditite, use Detect!" She instructed. Meditite's dark eyes turned green, ready to dodge the powerful move with ease. However, seeing this move made Conway smirk. He loved ruining any trainer's defense plan with his own cunning.

"Cancel that, Heracross!" He said quickly. "Use Feint!"

With its horn still glowing, Heracross heeded the call and switched plans; for every dodge Meditite made, Heracross met it with a successful hit until it had done enough damage to send Meditite flying back to the ground nearby Maylene.

Maylene looked deeply concerned. "Unbelievable… his Heracross knows Feint. Conway's like… a _genius_ when it comes to countering maneuvers." She gestured to Meditite, urging it to get ready to attack. "We're not giving up that easily! Meditite, use Confusion!"

Again, Meditite's eyes glowed as it concentrated. Suddenly, Heracross was consumed in a purple aura and couldn't move.

"D-dah…!! No good!" Conway cried out, completely unsure of how to handle this situation. He never considered a Psychic-type being a possibility amongst his opponents and the strategy Paul had written for him had no methods of evading them… not with Heracross, at least.

"Don't hold back!" Maylene encouraged her Pokémon. "Drag it across the ground until it says 'uncle'!"

Meditite smiled and proceeded to do so, using its power to forcefully drag Heracross all over the field, which consequently meant she was accidentally ruining a huge chunk of Reggie's backyard, but that hadn't occurred to her at the time. She would come to regret it later. But for now, her strategy did a bang-up job on Heracross, who was still able to battle, yet battered and fragile at this point.

Conway clearly looked nervous about what to do from here. As Heracross struggled to get up, Maylene was preparing for another attack already.

"I think it's high time to end this," Maylene announced with confidence. "Meditite, use Drain Punch!"

All Conway could do was shout out what came to mind, as the strategy was no longer useful to go by. "Heracross, dodge and use Aerial Ace!!"

Meditite's fist emanated with green-colored energy as it thrust its fist straight toward Heracross in hopes of landing a hit. Heracross flew up at the last second, however, gaining some distance at first to charge up, and in a blinding light, flew at Meditite with all its might. It was a direct hit, and Meditite did not have the strength to fully endure the super-effective blow.

It fell to the ground with a thud, clearly incapacitated.

"N-no way…" Conway muttered. "I totally pulled that out of nowhere… I actually managed to improvise!"

"Meditite is unable to battle!" Connally announced. "Heracross is the winner!"

Maylene took the loss in stride, knowing it still wasn't over yet. Though she was left with only one Pokémon, she knew her final selection would give Conway a hard time. She was satisfied to have been able to significantly damage Heracross as well. "Good job, Meditite," she quietly said while returning Meditite to its Pokéball. "You were great out there… so you earned a rest."

Deep down, Paul was mildly impressed because he had purposely made the strategy for Conway lacking, mainly due to not going in-depth with what types Maylene would possibly have compared to the detailed deliberation over what Candice might have. Still, he wanted to see if Conway could improvise (given that he failed to miserably at the Tag Battle Tournament; that blunder cost him the win) and he succeeded in doing so this time.

Still, he hid his true feelings with a stone-cold, emotionless expression. "So he knows how to work around setbacks after all…" He muttered, hoping no one would hear his remarks. "Too bad it doesn't change anything."

"I have to say, Conway, this has been a wild ride!" Maylene told her challenger. "You've got a really unique style, you know? I think that's the kind of thing Reggie needs for inspiration; thinking out of the box! You're doing great in representing how to do that."

Conway humbly bowed. "Well, don't forget to credit yourself. You're working every bit as hard as I am to inspire Reggie, and I have to say you're quite an ace battler." Then, he smirked in his traditional creepy manner. "I do believe we're nearing the end, however. We'll need to make this count."

After blushing briefly, Maylene nodded in agreement and brought out her final Pokéball. "This may be my last Pokémon, but you probably already know that it's common knowledge amongst Gym Leaders and the top-notch trainers that you should always save the best for last!"

"Indeed," Conway agreed. "I look forward to this climax. If you would, now…?"

Maylene formed her hands into fists, ready to sync up with her partner whenever necessary. "With pleasure! Lucario, it's up to you, now…!" She threw the Pokéball and the Aura Pokémon burst out, landing on the field and ready to test Conway's skills.

With his hands on his hips, Conway tilted his head and smirked at his final opponent. "Well, at least I expected this. I believe I will recall Heracross at this time! Heracross, return!"

As this was allowed, Conway returned Heracross to its ball. "I appreciate all your efforts, Heracross," Conway said. "But now it's time I returned the favor. She's showed me her best… so I'll show her mine." He took out his final Pokéball, activated it, and threw it to the field. "Come forth, Slowking!"

Conway's Royal Pokémon entered the battlefield, looking relatively calm compared to the rest of Conway's team.

"A Slowking…" Maylene acknowledged, knowing its typing, but never saw it with Conway before. She was surprised that this was his signature Pokémon. "I see. Well, Lucario, I think we can handle this!" She made a motion of gathering energy and throwing it forward, as Lucario would soon do as well. "Now! Aura Sphere!"

Lucario gathered a concentrated ball of aura between its paws and growled before firing it out straight towards Slowking.

However, Conway was not worried. "Ah, yes. A surefire hit… unless…" He smirked and looked to Slowking. "Use Protect!"

Slowking laughed heartily as it enveloped itself in a sphere of colorful light. Aura Sphere smashed against it and dissolved the barrier, but Slowking remained completely unharmed.

"Drat! He even has Protect?!" Maylene muttered in frustration. She was loving the battle, but was getting overly-anxious when her hits either never connected or made an effect on Conway's Pokémon half the time due to the trainer's scheming. "He's definitely not going easy on me, either…"

Lucario grunted at Maylene, hating every moment of self-doubt she's ever had. Maylene was quick to shake herself out of it. "Alright, I know Protect is less likely to work the more he tries to use it, so this should be only a one-time ordeal. Lucario, go ahead and use Bone Rush!"

The Aura Pokémon used its energy-manipulation abilities to form a very long bone suited for battle. Lucario rushed towards Slowking and proceeded to freely smack Slowking with the bone, which it was indeed susceptible to.

"Slowking, you can take it!" Conway assured his partner. "Wait for the right time…"

Slowking was feeling the pain, as Lucario was particularly ruthless with its fury, but as a bulky type, it was specially suited to excel in defense, and therefore was able to take every blow.

"Keep going!" Maylene urged, desperate to get her best hits in now before Slowking would react. "Force Palm!"

After the Bone Rush onslaught, since Lucario was in close proximity to Slowking, it was easily able to grab the large pink Pokémon and release a giant burst of energy, which effectively knocked the Royal Pokémon back a few feet.

Though it nearly tripped on the now-ruined terrain, Slowking maintained balance and stood firm after the attack had done its job. Lucario huffed a bit, mildly exhausted for going all-out on Slowking, which was pretty much required considering Slowking's size and girth.

"What a rush," Conway remarked. "Your Lucario certainly has a mean streak, Maylene."

"We're just really into the art of mortal combat!" Maylene replied, posing with her own fighting stance. "So watch out! Here comes Metal Claw!" As she swiped with her right hand, so did Lucario as its claws glowed and enlarged into blade-like extensions, intending to leave a mark on Slowking.

Conway thrust his fist forward, following the trend. "You'll regret coming at me haphazardly! Slowking, slow it down with Water Pulse!"

Slowking formed a large ball of water between its hands, eyed its foe carefully as it came ever-so closer with the vicious fangs. On its own, it knew the best time to release the attack and did so, with the ball bursting out into a fearsome wave that came straight towards Lucario. As it was in mid-attack, it had no way of dodging.

The force of the water knocked Lucario back and canceled the attack. It coughed a bit, having been submerged in a great deal of water unprepared, but stood back up on the saturated soil and glared deeply into its opponent's eyes.

Maylene was beginning to look intense, and really into the battle now. "We're not done yet, Conway! Lucario, Bone Rush! Let's go!"

Once more, the bone made of pure energy was formed and Lucario wasted no time in wailing at Slowking with its temporary weapon. Conway gasped when Lucario managed to land a rather critical hit by jabbing the end of the bone right into the gut of Slowking. A move like that knocked the wind out of it.

"S-Slowking…" Conway muttered in fear. Though the moves were not highly effective due to the typing, the force put behind them by Maylene's Lucario were rather devastating. "P-Protect…!"

Much to his horror, Slowking tried and failed to put its shield up.

"Now's your chance!" Maylene pointed out. "Force Palm!!"

Lucario grabbed Slowking again and blasted it back with a massive burst of energy. As Slowking skidded against the mud that was made as a result of the massive Water Pulse, Conway was horrified to see a flash of electricity stun his signature Pokémon, signifying that it had been paralyzed. It saddened him to see that his own paralyzing strategy failed and was now turned against him, but he tried not to dwell on that for too long.

"We can't let that handicap ruin our chances!" Conway notified his Pokémon. "You aren't totally helpless! Please… Protect again!"

"Lucario!" Maylene shouted, showing the movements of the move her Pokémon was about to do. "Aura Sphere…!!"

The Aura Pokémon was more than happy to comply. A ball of said Aura slammed into Slowking before it even had a chance to try and protect itself. It was now looking notably worried as it twitched and stuttered.

"Crap, I should have remembered!" Conway cursed himself. "Force Palm _does_ have a good chance of paralyzing opponents… why didn't I use Safeguard?! I wouldn't be in this predicament now if I had only-"

"Conway, stop your moping!" Paul shouted out, surprisingly. "You're going to lose on account of your pathetic sensitivity, and you'll have no one to blame but yourself!"

Harsh as he was, the insult snapped Conway out of it. "Paul's right… I can't dwell on past mistakes."

"Let's give it another Aura Sphere, Lucario!" Maylene called out, and her Pokémon complied. Slowking took yet another blow of concentrated Aura, and even though it wasn't particularly effective considering the typing, Slowking was getting worn down quickly just on Lucario's own fierceness.

"Alright, time for action," Conway decided. "I know you're not in a good condition right now, Slowking… but please try to concentrate! Use Psychic against Lucario and beat it to the ground!"

Slowking nodded to Conway shakily before closing its eyes and concentrating. Meanwhile, another Aura Sphere was about to head straight for it. Suddenly, the Aura Sphere was enveloped in an intense blue light and stopped in midair. Maylene and Lucario were surprised at this, and certainly didn't expect that Aura Sphere would be coming right back to the one who created it. It crashed into Lucario; absolutely devastating considering Lucario was weak to its own Fighting type.

"So that's all, huh?" Conway mused. "Using your own moves against you seems to be the key!"

"No way!" Maylene shouted. "I can't believe you… w-well, it's not going to happen again! Lucario, I think Slowking needs another Force Palm!"

"I think you know what to do, Slowking," Conway said with pure confidence. "Just wait for the right time…"

Slowking smirked as it waited for Lucario to come and grab it again. Once it made contact, it used Psychic again just as Lucario was releasing energy. The force of the move still shoved Slowking back some way, but the brunt of the force went right back to Lucario for another immensely effective blow. It was shot back the other way and slid across the mud.

By now, both opponents were battered, bruised, and tired. The trainers knew the end was nigh.

"This is it," Maylene acknowledged. "Lucario's running on empty… I have to make this count." She looked up, focused on Lucario, and posed in another battle stance. "Lucario, this is your time to shine! Smack Slowking head-on with Bone Rush, and we should be done here!"

"We're also going all-out!" Conway announced. "Break out of that paralysis and body-rush Lucario while using Water Pulse! With your size, we shall certainly prevail!"

After a moment of silence, both Pokémon proceeded to follow their trainers' instructions. Lucario snarled and growled as loudly as it could while making its way towards Slowking, prepared to knock it out with a concussion-inducing Bone Rush blow.

Slowking miraculously broke out of its paralysis just then and followed Conway's lead. It "ran" as fast as it could (which was pitiful compared to Lucario's speed), while building up the more intense Water Pulse it ever conjured. When the two forces met, both critical blows were successful.

After a loud explosion due to the collision of the titans, it could be briefly seen that Lucario bashed Slowking directly in the forehead with its Bone Rush attack while Slowking nailed Lucario in the jaw with its fists, containing the essence of Water Pulse.

A massive splash of water later, the aftermath was viewable to all who were present.

After the collision, Slowking's massive body fell right on top of Lucario. With the dynamics considered, it was no surprised that Lucario was knocked out.

However… Slowking was also unconscious, which prompted gasps from a few people. It was made apparent when it was not moving off Lucario, looking just as lifeless as its opponent.

"Whoa…" Maylene breathed out. "That was…"

"Intense…" Conway quietly finished.

"Both Lucario and Slowking are unable to battle!" Connally determined. "Therefore, this match is a draw! However, the Gym Leader no longer has any usable Pokémon while the challenger still has one. That means ultimate victory goes to Conway of Veilstone City…!!"

After hearing that, Conway fell to his knees. He couldn't believe what he just heard. Maylene laughed a bit at this reaction, figuring this was typical of a trainer who just won his first Gym Battle ever. However, she also slumped; very well exhausted from that brawl.

"You did well, Conway…" She complimented. "I can say, in all honesty, I've _never_ had a challenger like you before. It's a wonder why you don't do this more often… your potential is amazing."

Conway looked so happy, he could almost cry. "You… you really mean it…?"

"Don't get too excited," Paul interrupted, standing up from the crate now. "All Gym Leaders more-or-less say the same thing to every trainer who wins. It really doesn't mean anything; it's just common courtesy."

Maylene frowned, but didn't have the energy to do any more than that now. "Paul! That is so not true! I praise all individual trainers differently!"

"Maylene…" Paul began, uncertain of how to finish his sentence, but then came up with something. "You're as much of a liar as my brother is. So please don't speak."

"Actually, I'd like _you_ to stop speaking until we get back inside the house," Reggie scolded, suddenly right next to Paul. He promptly grabbed Paul by the arm and looked to the others, looking much friendlier than before... as he usually was. "Maylene, Conway… that was an excellent battle. You both have given me a lot of ideas to consider trying out, because… wow. You two were awesome!"

"A win-win situation!" Conway cheered. "I get my Gym Badge, and your inspiration is revived! It really worked…!"

Reggie smiled and nodded to Conway. "It sure did. I can't wait to start training again."

"Oh, that's right…!" Maylene cried out with a gasp. "I've got to present your Gym Badge..!"

Connally suddenly showed up next to Maylene, presenting the case containing the badge. "I planned that ahead of time," he said. "Do your duty with honor, Maylene."

"Oh, thank you so much, Connally!" Maylene thanked graciously, accepting the case. "I'll do my very best!" She promised, saluting to her pupil before approaching Conway. Everyone gathered around as it was made official…

"Conway, I can't thank you enough for giving me such a thrilling battle," Maylene began. "All of your hard work paid off, and in recognition of that and your accomplishments, I would like to present you the Cobble Badge." She opened up the case, revealing a single Cobble Badge sitting in the middle.

Conway carefully stared at it for a bit before taking it out of the case and admiring it by examining it even closer. Judging from the look on his face, it seemed part of him still couldn't believe that all of this was real.

"You earned it," Maylene assured, smiling to him. "Don't let anyone tell you otherwise."

"My first Gym Badge…" Conway whispered. "I… I thought I'd never…" Then he smiled and held it up, now fully in a celebratory manner. "But I did! I just secured myself a Cobble Badge…!" He even posed in a dramatic manner.

Out of nowhere, Conway's Pokémon joined in on the celebration. "Slow-king-slow…!" "Hera!!" "Arrrggh!"

… And then they all promptly collapsed, as they were still battered and exhausted.

"Wh-what the heck?!" Conway cried out. "How did you all get out of your Pokéballs?!" He pulled all three out. "Return, all of you! Geez!"

Everyone (minus Paul) laughed out loud at the incident as all of Conway's Pokémon were returned. After putting his Pokéballs back where they belonged, Conway looked to Maylene and grinned. "Eheh… believe you me, but I'm going to treasure this for the rest of my life! The first Gym Badge earned is a milestone that no other could take away! You've made a real mark on my life, Maylene, and for that, I thank you."

"That's why I love being a Gym Leader," Maylene said. "It feels alright to even lose now, because I've made a huge difference in a trainer's life in doing so."

"You're amazing, Maylene," Reggie cut in; the compliment, of course, made her blush. "Now that the Gym Battle's behind us, let's rest for a moment back at the house before we decide where to go from here."

Everyone… except Paul, again, nodded in agreement.

* * *

It was now late afternoon, turning into evening. While Maylene and Conway relaxed, Paul went straight to his room and shut the door. Reggie was about to address his issue with Paul, when all of a sudden he heard a familiar noise; his video phone was ringing.

"I'll get it…!" He assured to the others, running back down the stairs en route to the phone as quickly as he could. When Reggie answered the call, he was surprised to see a familiar face on the screen. "Roark…?!"

"Reggie!" Roark greeted, looking much more chipper than he usually was. "Good thing I caught you! Dad said you might not even be here."

Reggie laughed awkwardly, as he hadn't heard from Roark in months (usually due to the long distance between them, and both of their jobs eating up much of their free time). However, Roark was a childhood friend of his, which wasn't unnatural considering how close Brandon and Byron were. Roark was a few years older than Reggie, so he was one of the few Reggie could truly look up to and admire after his father left for Kanto. He truly wished he would have been able to battle him at the Oreburgh Gym, but back when Reggie originally traversed Sinnoh, he was only ten years old. Roark wasn't much older and wasn't even close to becoming Gym Leader material himself; it was actually Byron whom Reggie faced and defeated at the Oreburgh Gym.

"It's been a while, Roark," Reggie admitted. "We're both kept so busy these days…"

"I know, right?" Roark said in agreement. "It's been a rough road for both of us, but I think things are finally gonna get better from now on!"

This surprised Reggie. Usually Roark was not in the least bit optimistic about their everyday lives ever improving. "What's with the sudden optimism, huh?"

"Something amazing happened today!" Roark enthusiastically informed him. "I went to Canalave City because my mom and dad's anniversary is soon, you know? I wanted to get dad back home so they could actually celebrate it together. Naturally, we kinda erupted into a fight again…"

"That always seems to happen," Reggie noted, sighing. He could sympathize with Roark in that department. "I wish you guys would come to an understanding…"

"That's the thing!" Roark interrupted. "W-we actually made up! It took the help of a few kids, too, but… I realized that dad's cared about me and mom all along. Dad still keeps that Sunkern Leaf fossil that I found as a kid… he even said it's more important than any other fossil in his collection."

Even if Reggie still had issues with his family, it elated him to hear that Roark had fixed his own. "You don't say! Well, congratulations, Roark! I'm really happy for you guys. So he's going to spend some time with you and your mom at Oreburgh City, right?"

Roark happily nodded. "Just as soon as we get through his scheduled Gym Battle tomorrow. One of the kids who helped us work through our problems is on his own journey right now… I actually met him once when he was just starting out in Sinnoh. He's a Kanto kid, but he's got quite the Pikachu on him. Things worked out so well that dad's even letting me referee the match!"

"Hm…" The details about the "kid" were very familiar to Reggie. "A boy from Kanto, you said? With a Pikachu? I think I may know that kid."

Roark blinked, not expecting to hear that. "You do…?"

"Ash Ketchum, right?" Reggie guessed. "And I assume Brock and Dawn are still with him."

It surprised Roark that Reggie was correct in his guess, and even knew the names of the ones traveling with Ash. "Whoa, you're right! How'd you meet this guy, Reggie?"

"He came by this place when he first arrived in Veilstone City to battle against Maylene," Reggie told him. "And it was sort of a surprise for me, too, because it turns out he's a rival of my brother's… even if he doesn't like to admit it," he added with a laugh. "But it's certainly saying something when your dad's even letting you referee his Gym Battle! Ash and his friends seem to be little miracle-workers, because they even helped out Maylene when she was having confidence issues _and_ managed to help us chase out this gang of crooks named Team Galactic when they cut out the power in Veilstone City and tried to steal the meteorites."

This visibly impressed Roark. "Yeah, I heard about that incident in the news… but I had no idea you were involved in saving your own city! Guess you've still got it," he remarked with a wink, knowing very well how talented a battler Reggie once was.

"Well, obviously I wouldn't have been able to do it without their help, as well as Maylene's and Officer Jenny's," Reggie humbly pointed out. "But please, honestly? I've gotten rusty."

"That's what happens if you stop battling for a long time, I guess," Roark figured. "Even if your family's had trouble accepting it, it's good you're secure in your path in life. Speaking of, I'm actually aware of Paul and Ash's rivalry. They both battled me for the Coal Badge roughly around the same time, and I could tell there was tension!"

Reggie was amused; he wasn't aware the rivalry had been going on _that_ long, mostly because Paul refused to talk much about Ash. "Is that so? I hope he wasn't too nasty around you…"

"Nah, compared to how I remember Paul when he was really little, he was pretty tame with me," Roark assured. "I made sure to give him a hard time in the battle. Oh yeah, dad told me that Paul actually just recently battled him! He was so impressed by Paul's abilities that he decided to take a few days off to train at Iron Island!" The Gym Leader then suddenly looked doubtful. "Unless he was just using that as an excuse to go fossil-digging… he's done that before."

This made Reggie laugh quite audibly. "Your dad hasn't changed a bit! How unbelievable… and he gets away with it every time."

Roark smirked at that remark, but then looked curious. "Dad also told me that he met _your_ dad a few days ago, Reggie. What's up with that, huh…? He hasn't been in Sinnoh in… how long, now?"

"Seven years," Reggie recalled. "He wouldn't come back to Sinnoh without a reason. He's looking for a legendary Pokémon that we believe is native to this region. But don't worry," he assured. "He did actually come and visit me… and Paul, too."

"That's awesome, Reggie!" Roark cried out. "I can't begin to imagine how much of a surprise that was. Did you guys make up, too?"

Reggie smiled awkwardly as he tried to think of how to answer that. _Were_ things between him and Brandon completely resolved now? He remembered last night that Brandon, while notably nicer than he's usually known to be, couldn't return the hug his son spontaneously gave him before they parted. Instead, he was called "soft"… and that wasn't the first time. And there was still the matter of the Brave Symbol… Reggie knew that until he could earn that Symbol, this matter could not be completely resolved. Even if it seemed that Reggie was on better terms with his father now, Reggie knew that didn't mean that Brandon wouldn't be cold, distant, and tough on him if they were to interact again.

"We… kind of sorted a few things out," Reggie said, very uneasy now. "I think he'll at least make more of an effort to make contact with me, but… until I get a Brave Symbol, I really don't think a full breakthrough is possible."

"Harsh…" Roark remarked, fully sympathetic. "That's not even possible for you now. So you're saying never…?"

Reggie shook his head. "I'm going to try again, after all this time. He personally issued me a challenge… and once he finds the Pokémon he's looking for and I've built myself back up to my former glory, we're going to battle."

"So that's why dad said you might not be here!" Roark realized. "You'd be out training! Why aren't you now?"

"I'm sort of in… a slump, you might say," Reggie explained. "But I just watched an amazing battle, and I think I'm a bit inspired again. So I'll be resuming my training very soon."

That put Roark at ease. "Best of luck, then! Man, I really wish I could see it… you know, it'd be like old times when I watched a bunch of your Gym Battles in Sinnoh, plus the League."

"You know… if you can find the time to take a break, you're more than welcome to see it," Reggie offered. "Granted, it'll probably be in Kanto, but I'd let you know when it's time."

"You mean it?!" Roark was ecstatic. "Sure, I'm all for that! If dad can take breaks all the time to dig up fossils, then for sure I can take time off just this once to watch your battle! I'm sure you can do it this time."

Reggie laughed at that. "If you're not as bad about it as your dad, I'm sure you can have some time off. Thanks, though. I'll really appreciate your support… I'm going to need whatever I can get."

Roark nodded in agreement. "I fully believe in you, Reggie, but your dad's _beyond_ tough. I'm gonna give you all the moral support I can offer!"

"I'll really look forward to seeing you again, too," Reggie pointed out. "It really has been too long. Still… it's great you finally patched things up with your dad. I can't imagine how good you're feeling right now."

"It's indescribable," Roark admitted. "Really, I can't… put it in words. But I'm going to really look forward to see you experience that feeling too, after you defeat your dad! I can feel your time's coming."

Reggie had already gotten a taste of that feeling last night when Brandon entrusted him with Andrea's Shell Bell necklace. He was moved in a way he'd never been before… and he craved for more of that feeling. Earning the Brave Symbol would bless him with that feeling for the rest of his life; Reggie knew it. He could see last night's events as an aid for him… for as he was sampled that warm feeling when Brandon was actually acting like a father for the first time in years, Reggie was hungry for even more validation. Being hungry for those everlasting sentiments, Reggie was much more driven to compete than before.

"I think I can feel it too," Reggie agreed. "Thanks for giving me a call… I mean, if you and your family can make amends, then I know… it's possible with mine."

"Don't just say 'possible', Reggie!" Roark ordered, pointing at him. "It's _inevitable!_"

Reggie smirked at that. "Alright, then! Inevitable. I appreciate this, Roark. Thanks for telling me about this… and you make sure things stay peaceful among you all. It's so great you managed to get through to your dad."

Interestingly, Reggie could've sworn that he saw Roark wipe away a tear, but it was so quick and brief that he wasn't certain. "Thanks, Reggie… you were always pulling for me. I think I'd better go and catch up some more with my old man, now."

"You'd better," Reggie concurred. "I'll see you around, okay?"

Roark grinned. "You just let me know when it's time for you to battle your dad, and I'll be right on my way to the Battle Pyramid!"

"I'll be sure to do that," Reggie promised. "Goodbye, and good luck."

"Same to you, Reggie! Seeya." And both of them ended their call right then.

Reggie sighed, though not particularly in a happy way after his friend disappeared from the screen. He slumped and tried not to frown… because while he truly was happy that Roark and Byron reunited as father and son again… he was jealous of that as well. Reggie didn't want to tell Roark that little detail, though; he found it petty. Still, he couldn't help how he felt, and Reggie hated that he couldn't change his feelings on the matter.

As Reggie walked off and quietly made his way up the stairs, he realized he felt alone again, though in a different way now. He and Roark were miserable while having issues with their fathers… but they were at least miserable together. Reggie couldn't see a trace of misery lingering on Roark in the least as they conversed. It was like nothing Reggie had ever seen before. But now Reggie was facing his misery alone; he couldn't count Paul, because Paul apparently couldn't care less if Brandon fell off a cliff.

Perhaps Paul was miserable in a different way, but it certainly wasn't because he missed his father (or mother).

In a short while, Reggie faced Paul's bedroom, where the door was still shut. He prayed it wasn't locked, because he knew it would take at least half an hour of negotiating before he would be able to convince Paul to unlock the door. He carefully put his hand on the knob and turned it… and the door opened, much to Reggie's relief. After sighing that out, he entered the room to see Paul standing by his window and staring outside of it, as if he couldn't wait to get out.

"Well… you didn't lock the door this time," Reggie began, sounding casual. "That must be a good sign."

"You let Maylene have my room," Paul noted. He'd been able to tell since he clearly saw that his bed had been used and a few of Maylene's belongings were still present within the room.

Reggie frowned… but at least Paul was cutting straight to the chase. "I told you how it was last night, Paul. I was very clear about that. I'd swear on my life that it _remains_ true today, but I'm sure you still wouldn't believe me. But yes, I let Maylene use your room by sole virtue of the fact that you have the only other bed in the house, and I'm not going to force her to sleep on the couch when you have a perfectly usable bed that you weren't occupying."

"Because you sent me to Conway's," Paul explained. "Never do that again, Reggie."

"We'll see," Reggie vaguely replied, sitting on Paul's bed now. "I really am sorry for falling asleep during the Gym Battle… I know how badly you want to get out of here and head for Snowpoint City, so I tried to tough it out… because, you know, I really didn't get any sleep last night."

Paul still wouldn't look at his brother. "You never said why you couldn't sleep," he reminded Reggie. "That isn't like you. But if I were you, I'd start talking right now."

Reggie sighed, looking apprehensive about this. "The problem is… you wouldn't believe me if I told the truth. And honestly, Paul… I'd like it if you chose some place _other_ than Snowpoint City to earn your next Gym Badge."

This intrigued Paul; enough to make him turn around to face Reggie. "What's wrong with Snowpoint City? We've established a week ago that I can handle myself perfectly fine on the way there."

"I know," Reggie said. "And I was perfectly fine with that until last night… I started having nightmares terrible enough to keep me up all night. It was all centered around you, Paul." Initially, Reggie didn't want to burden Paul with the fact that he had these premonitions at all. But he realized there may be no to other way to prevent him from going to Snowpoint City, and after the explosion between the brothers that happened during the Gym Battle, Reggie was more than ready to lay on a little tough love.

But naturally, Paul looked skeptical. "Nightmares, you say."

Reggie had no time for his brother's negativity, however. "When you get images in your head of your brother lying dead in the snow with blood everywhere, then yeah! Naturally I'm going to start reconsidering my feelings on you going where there's a lot of _snow_, get it? You know what really got me to change my mind, though?"

Paul rolled his eyes, completely unfazed by what his brother said. "I can't imagine what."

"Hearing our mother speak to me _in my head_," Reggie let out. "Even when I was wide awake, I could hear her. She said a lot of vague stuff, but one thing she kept saying is that I have to protect you!"

_That_ made Paul double-take. Normally he would have dismissed that along with the horrific nightmare images, but he remembered Maylene talking about how Reggie was hallucinating visions of his mother as he recovered from the lightning strike. Paul figured that wouldn't be unusual for someone who narrowly escaped certain death, but having it become an issue _now_, five days later?

Reggie ignored Paul's lack of reply. "I can't begin to explain how or why that happened… it's never happened before…" Paul especially took notice to that; it confirmed that Reggie didn't remember a thing about his first recovery. "But I know it was our mother trying to warn me that something bad will happen to you if you go to Snowpoint City. It's my job to make sure that doesn't happen, and that's by forbidding you to go there."

Paul was trying to get a handle on the situation, though. "You… said you 'heard' our mother again?"

Reggie blinked. "Again? I just said it never happened before."

Mentally, Paul cursed himself for letting that "again" slip out; now he had no choice but to explain himself. "Actually… it has. You just don't remember it… I don't know why, but maybe that lightning strike screwed with your memory or something," he guessed, sighing.

"Then what does this…" Reggie was looking scared now. "What does this mean? If she really came to me twice, then…"

Paul helplessly shrugged and walked over to his brother. "I don't know; I wasn't even there when it happened the first time. Only Maylene was. We figured it was a near-death experience the first time, so… evidently, that's not the case if she came to you again after you've fully recovered five days later."

"Then either this is for real, or I'm slowly going insane," Reggie fearfully acknowledged. "Paul, I'm scared… but either way, I think we should listen to what I'm being told."

"Don't be so gullible," Paul criticized. "Did she explicitly say 'Don't let Paul go to Snowpoint City'?"

Reggie shook his head, knowing his brother was using this loophole to his advantage. "She just said for me to protect you. That you have limitations, or… something. The image of you in the snow was before she started talking to me…"

"Limitations?" Paul scoffed. "Okay, there's no way this is for real. I think you really are just going insane, Reggie. You were under a ton of pressure and you realize you practically snapped while training your Pokémon, and that was before you even got hit by lightning. Maybe you've been going insane all along and the lightning just sped that up."

Reggie frowned; he had a feeling he would lose this battle. "You're going to Snowpoint City no matter what I say, aren't you?"

"Pretty much," Paul casually confessed. "You can't stop me."

"I have ways," Reggie darkly said, which disturbed Paul a little. "I guess I can let you go… only on one condition."

Paul figured this would be no big deal; he knew his brother to be lenient. That's how he was always able to walk all over him even though he was younger. "Sure, bring it on. What's the condition?"

"That you take Conway with you," Reggie decided. There was a moment of silence as this sunk into Paul's head.

"What?!" Paul practically exploded. "I'm just finally now getting rid of that cretin by the end of today, and you want him to follow me to Snowpoint City?!"

"I was told, explicitly, to protect you," Reggie reminded him. "Obviously, I won't be able to do that in person. The next best thing I can do is give you a traveling companion. So if you _do_ end up in a life-threatening situation on the way to Snowpoint City, Conway will at least be there to help you and prevent the disaster that I just saw in my dream."

Paul couldn't bear to listen to this; it was a nightmare come true for him. "What do you expect Conway to do?! He's an amateur; a _loser!_ If I get into trouble, you can't honestly expect _him_ to save me!"

"I just watched him battle today, Paul," Reggie noted. "With the Pokémon he has, I think he's very capable of taking care of you. He took care of you while you were sick in Canalave City, right?"

Paul just stared at his feet. "Yes…" He lowly grumbled. "But I didn't ask him to."

"Well, the other thing is… I _can't_ come with you, and no one other than Conway will _want_ to come with you," Reggie stated. "You're so keen on making enemies with everyone you meet, so that leaves Conway as your only option. I'm not going to let you go to Snowpoint City alone."

At this point, Paul was furious; he was stuck between a rock and a hard place. He was determined to reach Snowpoint City no matter what, but… he was so determined to do it _without_ Conway. As Paul was angrily defeated, Reggie smiled at his brother and stood up.

"Guess you're out of arguments," Reggie figured, making his way to the door. "You'd better pack up whatever you can; it's a very long journey to Snowpoint. I'm going to let Conway know that he's coming with you."

Paul growled a low and angry "_Fantastic_," added with sarcasm as he began to gather up his belongings.

Meanwhile, Reggie explained to Conway what had been decided, and after a while Paul came down, fully ready to leave.

"Paul, I can't believe it!" Conway shouted with joy. "We get to be travel-buddies! Oh, this is _great!_ I was dying for an excuse to get out of my house and this'll be _perfect!_ I can't wait to-"

Paul calmly put his hand over Conway's mouth, effectively shutting it. "Just shut up and get your things. If you need to bring something along from home, let's hurry up and get that accomplished so we can get _out_ of here before the sun goes down."

Maylene happily waved farewell to the pair. "Have a safe journey, you guys!"

Reggie smiled and nodded, looking at least partially satisfied that he potentially dodged a bullet there. "Give us a call anytime, okay? We'll be waiting to hear from you both!"

"We will!" Conway assured with a wave as he and Paul began to set off. "Thanks for everything! We'll call soon…!"

"Get a move on, already!" Paul complained, having walked ahead of Conway. "I won't accept you holding us back with your nonsense."

"Ah…!" Conway panicked as he ran to catch up with Paul. "No worries, Paul. I can match your pace whenever necessary."

Paul just sighed… this was _not_ going the way he wanted at all. And the issues between him and his family were growing out of control by this point... he was ready to separate himself from Veilstone City for a long, long time.

* * *

Within a few days, Paul and Conway managed to travel quite a good distance from Veilstone City. They came out of a cave after passing through their sixth town and were met with gusty winds and a significantly colder temperature.

There, Paul and Conway were faced with the ominous Route 216: the only way to Snowpoint City. The interesting thing about Route 216 was that the roads forked off in many ways; some were more treacherous and snow-filled than others. Paul smirked as he looked up the route he was about to conquer. Conway, however, hugged himself and shivered. His outfit was in no way suited for wintery weather; in a t-shirt, pants that didn't even reach his ankles, and sandals, Conway knew he'd be an instant popsicle if he tried to get through the snow.

"S-so, according to the map, there are alternate roads within Route 216 that aren't as bad as this," Conway reported, sounding somewhat-intimidated. "I propose we take the road furthest to the right; the snowy parts are brief and it's a pretty solid road with no mountain-climbing to do. I believe that's the way pretty much every trainer takes."

However, Paul shook his head, still smirking. "Tell me which road's the worst to take."

"Uh…" Conway checked the map and bit his lip. "That'd be the one in the middle. Incidentally enough, it's the quickest way to Snowpoint City… but no one ever takes it since you're in the heart of the storm over there…" He looked up the route, gulped, and went back to the map. "Um, we did watch the news for the weather report at the last town we stopped in… I believe Rhonda said a massive blizzard is pounding this area and all of Mt. Coronet right now. I propose we wait-"

"We're taking the middle road," Paul decided. "And we're going to do it right now. I'm not losing time over a little bit of snow."

Conway yelped at the idea of it. "That's the thing, Paul! It isn't a 'little bit' of snow; It's a _ton_ of snow! And that road is practically a deathtrap! Surely you aren't serious…!"

"Remember when we talked about free will?" Paul reminded Conway of that conversation they had many days ago in Canalave City. "Well, you can't make me _not_ take this road, Conway. The decision is final; we're _going_ with the middle road."

"You _would_ use that logic against me, wouldn't you…" Conway muttered. "Fine. But at the very least, we should head back to the last town we were at and get ourselves bundled up. I didn't expect we'd go the hard route, so I didn't bring my winter clothes…"

Paul just shook his head; the smirk never faded. "Too bad for you, then. You're either going to tough it out or turn around and go home, because I don't _need_ extra clothing."

Conway went over and examined Paul's coat, pinching the fabric (and annoying Paul in the process) to judge its thickness. "Ah… no, Paul, this won't be enough. Rhonda said the temperatures are going below zero in the night, and this coat is _not_ below-zero material. You won't freeze to death as quickly as I would, but it's an inevitability. You don't have gloves or anything that would protect your head… that's where eighty percent of your body heat is, by the way…"

"Spare me your trivia and your babbling," Paul coldly ordered. "I am taking this road _right now_ with the clothes I have on and there's nothing you can do to stop me. You're either with me or without me."

"Paul," Conway pleaded, now completely serious. "With all the elements in play here, you're going to get yourself killed out there. Reggie said I needed to keep an eye on you, so I am. And as your advisor, I-"

"Zip it," Paul said sharply, placing a hand over his mouth. He had to do this numerous times to shut Conway up over the last few days. "There is no way I won't make it out of there alive. I can do it with these clothes, my ungloved bare hands, and no extra help from _you_. You'd just be a liability."

Just then, Conway narrowed his eyes and grabbed Paul's hand, removing it from his mouth. "Wanna make a bet on that?"

Paul looked at Conway curiously. "Make a bet on what?"

"What you just said," Conway responded. "That you can make it through the hardest path on Route 216, with the clothes you've got right now, with the severe weather conditions in play, and you can do so without any help."

To that, Paul only rolled his eyes. "What's the point of making a bet on that?"

On cue, the lenses of Conway's glasses shined brightly with the light. "Because I'm about to make an offer you can't refuse."

Paul crossed his arms and looked doubtful about this, yet curious. "What kind of offer?"

"If you can make it through the hardest road on Route 216 without dying or requiring help, I will cease to be your travelling companion. That means you can continue with your journey in solitude, which I'm sure you're just _dying_ for."

At this point, Paul didn't care how creepy it was that Conway could practically read his mind; he looked almost excited about the prospect. "So you're saying if I own up to what I claimed, I won't have to put up with you anymore?"

"Precisely," Conway affirmed, though now it was his turn to be smug. "You'll have proved yourself to be a young man of pure independence. Now, since this _is_ a bet, I have to say there is a consequence if you are to fail your task."

"And what's _that?_" Paul asked, looking ready to take on any challenge.

With a cheesy grin, Conway pointed to himself. "Provided we can get you out of there alive, _you_ will owe me a favor of my choosing."

Paul didn't know what to make of that… "You're saying I'll have to do something for you if I can't make the trip?"

"Right again!" Conway praised, applauding. "I have not yet decided what exactly that favor will be, or when I will call upon you to fulfill it, but I'll certainly think of something while you're out there killing yourself. Another condition is that I get to stay with you and follow you around as long as I wish to."

Paul rolled his eyes, not at all impressed with his partner's tactics. "As long as the favor's not something beyond my comfort zone, you're on."

"I will select the favor very carefully," Conway promised. "But worry not of that. You're convinced you'll win the bet, correct?"

"Of course I am!" Paul shouted at him.

"Then, no need to worry!" Conway sung out, which just flat-out irritated Paul. He heard that phrase far too many times already.

Paul gestured to the route he was about to take. "When I make it, I'll call you from Snowpoint City to confirm I held up my end of the bargain."

Conway nodded. "Then I'll stay at the last down and await your call… or to be conveniently close enough to save your life… whichever way the 'wind' blows," he said with a smirk, referring to the intense winds they were dealing with now.

"Well, try not to be too torn up when I make you look like a complete idiot," Paul advised, beginning to walk off towards his destination. "If I'm generous, I might send you a postcard from Snowpoint City… you know, and say 'wish you _weren't_ here'."

To that, Conway shrugged. "Well, I wouldn't be there, anyway… ah, all the same, I'll take that statement as your famous last words." He waved goodbye to Paul, while the latter just groaned and turned away and continued to walk off until he could no longer be seen. Conway then returned to the cave the pair originally came out from and took out two Pokéballs. "We'll just see who the _idiot_ is between the two of us…"

Tossing them simultaneously, Conway released Slowking and Castform. Both of them were mildly confused about what was going on, but Conway raised his hands to silence them.

"Paul's out on a suicide mission, guys," Conway informed, sounding completely serious. "I can't follow him because I don't have the proper clothing, so I want you two to keep tabs on him for me. I know you guys can at least withstand a blizzard."

Slowking confidently nodded, while Castform cheerfully concurred.

"Slowking, you'll need to keep your distance since you stick out like a sore thumb," Conway instructed. "I'll be trusting you to mentally relay Paul's status to me so I'll know when to come rescue him."

"Slow-slow-king," Slowking said, saluting.

Conway then looked to Castform. "Castform, I know you can change the way you appear during certain weather patterns, including winter storms. You'll blend in with the background more easily, so you'll be following Paul closely so you can monitor his status directly, and then relay it to Slowking, who'll relay it to me. Think you can do that?"

"Caaaaast!" Castform assured, getting up close in Conway's face, which made him laugh a bit.

"Okay, okay! You can have a treat before you go," Conway conceded, pulling out a pink Poffin. "Now, I'll expect results, because Paul's life rests in the hands of you two!" He tossed the Poffin to Castform, who caught it with its mouth and quickly devoured it, enjoying its sweet taste.

Conway went out of the cave with his Pokémon following. He pointed straight towards the impending doom that was Route 216. "Paul took the middle road, so that's where you'll be heading."

Slowking and Castform gave a final nod to Paul as Conway signaled them to leave. "Now, get moving before he gets too far ahead of you…!"

Both Pokémon ran off and eventually disappeared into the distance while Conway looked on. He sighed, hoping he did the right thing by playing it out this way.

"This is rather risky," Conway admitted to himself, looking worried. "Guess that comes with the thrill of adventure…"

He looked to the sky as the gusty winds blew all around him. He smirked, enjoying the rush.

"Bring it on, then!" Conway shouted out loud to no one in particular… except perhaps nature itself. "Nothing you throw at me could ever compare to what my sister throws at me back home…!"

As time would go on, Conway would live to regret those words in the near future.

* * *

**( TBC )**


	9. Disco Monferno!

**(Notes:**

**Well, I didn't expect it would take me this long to actually get this chapter out! I've just had so many distractions this summer that it's been hard to focus on making this chapter live up to the standards of the past ones! Having said that, this one at least isn't as brutally long as the last one, but it's still a good 26k and-a-half words long. So that's 52 pages on MS Word? Phew. Well, this summer's Pokemon episodes in Japan have helped me greatly in giving me preliminary blueprints for the story as far out as Chapter 20, potentially! Enjoy the fun while it lasts, because next chapter is when things will get even nastier than you could possibly imagine! I even cut things off short a bit because I didn't want this chapter turning out to be the monster that 8 did, and hopefully 10 will be more well-balanced and dramatic as a result of this. Additionally, Chapter 11 will be an Episode Adaption chapter, namely for DP118: aka _Pursuing a Lofty Goal!_. That'll be my first shot at an adaption and it's growing ever-closer, so I anticipate the challenge! It'll also be the proper debut chapter for Ash, Brock, and Dawn, though mind you this is still primarily Paul's (and his other acquaintances') story!**

**Hope everyone enjoys what I've brought to the table after such a long waiting period, and I definitely hope all of this isn't as convoluted as I think it potentially could be! And yes, mind you, there are quite a few towns here in this chapter that were entirely made up by me and don't exist in any form of Pokemon canon. But if the anime can pull random towns out of their asses, so can I! Here you go, everybody!**

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"Some deathtrap this is," Paul remarked with sarcasm while traveling on what was called the most dangerous and treacherous path to Snowpoint City. He was in the midst of a fierce blizzard with only a thin jacket and an ordinary pair of pants to shield his body from the coldness. Needless to say, they were quite ineffective in keeping Paul warm, but as always, Paul ignored the discomfort and pain as best he could and continued making progress up Route 216. Still, it had quickly gotten to the point where he kept his bare hands in his coat pockets at all times.

One thing Conway was right about, though, was that Paul was the only trainer taking this path. Nothing accompanied him but the occasional ambient sound of the habitant Pokémon in the background. With the cloud cover, it was getting dark rather quickly; the further Paul progressed, the dimmer the surroundings became.

It was then that it occurred to Paul that he would need to either complete this path before sundown or he would need to find some kind of shelter once it became too dark for him to see. Even he knew he couldn't very well settle in an area like this. Paul couldn't deny that the path was rather sketchy; he passed through many narrow trails with bottomless pits surrounding all sides, icy slopes, and the occasional eerie sound that Paul couldn't quite figure out where the source was. This path was obviously either very old or very incomplete.

After carefully stepping over a patch of ice, Paul found himself faced with a roadblock in the form of a stiff, iced-over wall of snow. By this point, Paul was well into the steepest area of the mountain range, so all he had were continuous bottomless pits on all sides (confining Paul to the straight path only). It was considerably dark, but Paul knew there was no way it could be nighttime yet. Priority one was to get past the wall of snow.

Reluctantly, Paul drew out his very numb hands and placed them on the wall of snow. He hoped he would be able to dig his way through, or at least tear apart what appeared to be a fragile obstacle. But Paul was not pleased to find that the ice covering the snow made it very hard for him to even make a dent in the wall. It didn't help that after several hours of traveling that Paul's energy was very low; much lower than he thought it to be. He was unbelievably hungry but had no food in tow (as that was Conway's job) and no form of vegetation in the area to feed on. Due to this, it was very much a lost cause as Paul continued to punch and scrape at the wall of snow.

"At least there's a challenge here after all," Paul said, oddly eager to have the elements truly test him. He knew Conway overhyped this path and figured this wall of snow to be the final test before reaching a clear way to Snowpoint City. "This ought to be fun…"

Seeing that his hands were ineffective, Paul decided to kick the wall and break through. Paul had to be careful about this, however, as there was only a small bit of land behind him to support his falling before the ominous crevices where there would be no return. It delighted Paul to see that his kick had cracked the icy barrier surrounding the snow wall. He fell down soon afterward, but landed safely on the small path of ground underneath him. Grinning at the sight of progress being made, Paul readied himself for another kick (even though he was barely able to lift up his own legs at this point). He stopped short when he heard a familiar sound out of nowhere: a Pokémon being released from its ball.

Paul paused and turned around, seeing none other than his Weavile, who evidently went out of its ball of its own accord.

"Wea, wea!" Weavile shouted out as its claws began to glow; it was ready to Brick Break that giant wall of snow for its trainer and honestly wondered why it was not called out earlier. Before it was able to make a move, however, Paul extended his arm forward and stopped his Pokémon. He did not look pleased with this surprise at all.

"I don't recall asking for your help, Weavile," Paul harshly scolded it. "You've been with me long enough to know I won't tolerate anyone coming forth without my permission. It isn't up to you to determine when you're needed."

This left Weavile feeling even more confused. It managed to utter out an inquiring "W-wea…? Vile…" before Paul interrupted once more.

"You just don't get it, do you?" Paul said snidely. "I decided to go up this route without any outside help. That isn't just limited to Conway; it applies to you and the rest of the team as well. So unless you're intentionally trying to sabotage the bet because Conway was probably _far_ too nice to you while I was unconscious after the last Gym Battle – in which case, you might as well not even return to your Pokéball and just get out of here – I suggest you leave this to me and only come out when I tell you to from now on."

Even if it had recently made up for its past shortcomings by winning Paul the Mine Badge, Weavile knew how little it took to get on its trainer's bad side. Though it didn't feel comfortable with leaving Paul to fend for himself in these harsh conditions, Paul evidently was not letting anyone change his mind. With a look of resignation, Weavile bowed to its trainer in understanding of what it had been told.

Most trainers would appreciate their Pokémon's desire to help even if they did not accept it. In Paul's case, though, only rarely would he be like "most" trainers. He looked extremely annoyed that Weavile even took a tiny fraction of his time away with its concern. "Then go ahead and return now," he commanded, aiming the Pokéball towards Weavile and recalled it. As he put the Pokéball away, Paul took out the other five he carried with him and glared down at each one.

"I hope the rest of you heard that," Paul warned, still with a threatening tone. He was rather wary now, as Weavile had been with him for a while and usually knew better than to pull something like this. If Weavile would do this, Paul feared all of his more-recent Sinnoh captures would be just as foolhardy. "This is something I need to accomplish on my own, and that's how I intend to finish out. Letting your emotions cloud your judgment will only tell me that I was wrong about any of you being worthy to travel along my side. This is your only warning." Having finished his piece, Paul stored away the rest of the Pokéballs and hoped that was sufficient enough of a threat (that he wasn't afraid to carry out) to keep them all hushed for the rest of this journey.

He was losing precious sunlight over this, and with that, Paul turned back to his obstacle. As his unprotected, numb hands chipped away at the ice he cracked open, Paul was quickly finding it harder and harder to maintain perfect focus. He felt extremely tired and even a bit nauseous (which he found odd, considering how hungry he was). Still, the young trainer had traveled enough to know it was an extremely bad idea to pass out at a time like this. Paul still figured Snowpoint City to be close by – perhaps even within view after getting this wall torn down. He'd traveled so far that he couldn't see why he wouldn't be there by now… especially if this was the alleged "short" way to the destination.

With that in mind, Paul continued to ignore his body failing on him as best he could after clearing away enough ice to finally dig into the snowy layer underneath. This was considerably easier to dig out, and by pushing from within the snow behind, Paul was able to take out large chunks of the icy layer that he didn't already dismantle.

Not far away, Conway's Castform (in its Snow-cloud transformation) watched its trainer's companion with extreme concern. It had been monitoring Paul's progress nonstop since Conway sent it and Slowking off and was ready at a moment's notice to report back to Slowking and signal it to call for help when the time was right. What was difficult about this was that Paul had traveled so far now that it was hard to determine whether or not the help from the town Conway was in would reach Paul in time should anything happen to him. Granted, with vehicles, anyone would be able to travel the distance Paul traveled on foot in a much shorter amount of time… but at this point, it was tricky.

Castform wasn't very experienced at this at all… but then again, neither was Slowking. Their trainer was considerably more cautious than Paul ever would be. Still, being in hearing range, Castform could clearly hear the talk-down Weavile had received simply for wanting to help. It knew things wouldn't be pretty if it was discovered by Paul, and that was more than enough to keep Castform quiet and well-hidden enough to not arouse the trainer's suspicions that he was being followed. Still, the Weather Pokémon could simply not comprehend why Paul behaved the way he did to his team. It went against every principle that Conway taught his most recent capture.

It took Paul much longer than he thought it would to make a hole through the wall of snow. It got to the point where he could no longer bear to use his ungloved hands to dig away the powder and improvised through stretching out his own jacket sleeves to cover his hands, then balling both hands into fists and closing off the armholes. Though at this point this really didn't give Paul any warmth back to his hands (nor did it make them feel any less numb), and it certainly wasn't easy to dig with balled-up fists, Paul was unable to make any significant further progress with his fingers becoming spastic and uncontrollable. Luckily, he could feel the winds from the other side of the wall seeping through, so Paul knew he was close to breaking out.

With his hands already formed into fists, Paul weakly punched through the snow and a new layer of ice. Now feeling the winds full-force, he knew he was close enough to the other side to push his way through with very little effort.

As he did so, the first thing Paul did after brushing the snow off of him was to look back at the obstacle he just plowed through and tiredly smirked. "That's the best you've got…?" Paul rhetorically asked, though his voice was hollow and weary at this point. Even if the pathway wasn't as menacing as it seemed, Paul would have been just as satisfied if the rest of the way to Snowpoint City was nothing more than mere walking.

However, as he turned around to face what was ahead of him, Paul was more than a little disappointed. He fully expected to see the city at least from a distance. In reality, there wasn't even as much as a single light to indicate that Paul was anywhere near civilization. Due to the treacherous nature of the path, there was really only one direction to go the entire way, so Paul knew he didn't take a wrong turn anywhere.

But looking at it another way… as Paul _was_ in the middle of a blizzard, the range of visibility was very low. The dense fog and large, rapidly-falling snowflakes would prove to be something that could hide a city very well until one was right in front of it. Paul simply considered this to be the case and that Snowpoint City was still just within reach, even if it couldn't be seen. He felt terrible right now, but knew this pain would be worth it with his reward of being rid of Conway waiting in the wings. All in all, it made Paul feel great to know he could go beyond his limits and do what most trainers would never think of trying; not even for all the money in the world.

But all of this fell to pieces – almost literally – as Paul took his first step forward. He was so absorbed with finding Snowpoint City and his survival instincts were dulled from the immense amount of physical endurance his body suffered that thinking to check the ground never came to mind. Due to this, Paul was completely oblivious that his trail continued upwards to the right rather than straight ahead… where there was no ground whatsoever.

Well, there _was_ ground. But said ground was a few hundred feet below where Paul had been until he took that first step. Paul barely had time to register that he'd just walked off a cliff before gravity quickly took over from there on.

Paul made a harsh landing much sooner than he thought he would, as he landed stomach-first onto an ice-covered boulder that jutted out from the cliff. Any noise Paul had been making while falling was sufficiently snuffed out due to this, though the interruption to Paul's fall did very little good for the unfortunate trainer. Stunned from the impact, Paul nearly slid off the boulder already before he tried to grasp onto it.

The trouble didn't end there. Not only was there not much of anything for Paul to maintain his hold for very long, but he was far too exhausted to even try to lift himself up, and his hands were in no condition to hang on for dear life. It wasn't for a lack of effort, but Paul found himself unable to hold onto the boulder for any longer. He slid off and resumed falling to what seemed to be his demise.

There were still interferences, however, but nothing that really helped at all. Paul attempted to grab onto another rock that stuck out long enough and would support his weight, but the trainer had no way to tell or control the proximity between himself and the rock. Therefore, there wasn't ample time (not that Paul was in his right mind to judge this anyway) to discern that his hands weren't the only thing close to the rock. As Paul leaned forward in preparation to grab the rock, he was met with a nasty surprise when the jagged edge of the rock scraped against his forehead. It was a light scrape at best, but that's all what was needed to bring about bloodshed. This practically paralyzed Paul as he fell helplessly towards the last thing that would break his fall – yet another boulder – which would only make contact with the back of Paul's head.

This was enough to completely knock Paul unconscious before he finally hit the ground. His fall being somewhat-interrupted coupled with the fact that there was a copious amount of snow waiting below at least meant that the fall itself did not kill him.

But numerous outstanding factors were about to.

Castform quickly rushed over as it heard Paul cry out in reaction to the fall, but there was nothing it could do to reach Paul in time before he made his way to the ground. Slowking was also not far behind, having joined up with its teammate once Paul was immersed in the little cave he made from the wall of snow. Slowking calmly focused its energies in sensing out just how much Paul longer had while Castform nervously watched on below. It wanted to immediately go down to Paul and help, but there was nothing Castform itself could really do. Instead, it awaited commands from Slowking, as it knew Slowking was the one Conway confided in the most. In his absence, Conway's Pokémon usually knew to listen to Slowking first before anyone else.

Slowking looked rather grim as it assessed the situation and determined that Paul didn't have much time left at all. It motioned to Castform that both of them should go down and see what they could best do to preserve Paul's life before his fellow humans could arrive to aid him. Castform easily did so by floating its way down to where Paul fell; Slowking had to take a much less convenient route by carefully hopping down onto the slippery rocks protruding from the cliff until it was low enough to safely land.

Just as Castform reached Paul, it was surprisingly greeted by company. After bearing the intense impact of the fall, all of Paul's Pokémon were shaken and knew something had gone wrong. Against their better judgment, all of them decided to voluntarily come out of their Pokéballs to see what had become of their trainer. Torterra was first, followed by a very jumpy Weavile. Electabuzz and Honchkrow were next, each looking concerned, and finally Ursaring and Gliscor came out. Not all of these Pokémon were well-suited for this weather, so the harsh conditions shocked some more than others.

What was felt equally amongst them all was the abject horror upon first laying eyes on their trainer, who was indeed down for the count and in critical condition, no less. They all circled around him, trying to figure out what they could do now that Paul could no longer help himself. None of them knew exactly where they were, how to reach the nearest town, or how to even escape the mountain range. Not that they weren't willing to go off and find out, but none were willing to do so at Paul's expense. Even though the trainers were vastly different from each other, Paul's Pokémon all shared a common understanding just like Conway's did: when in doubt, whenever the trainer cannot have a say, the Pokémon closest to him takes over.

In this case, it was obviously Torterra whom Paul's Pokémon knew where to turn to.

Everyone was surprised to see Castform present, with Slowking following soon after. However, they knew this was a good thing, as it meant that they were not completely stranded and doomed to fend for themselves. Instinctively, all of Paul's Pokémon surrounded their fallen trainer in an attempt to keep him safe and comfortable for as long as they possibly could.

They had to be careful, though, as it was soon discovered that Paul wasn't only bleeding from his forehead; the nasty blow he took on the back of his head was much more severe. Being the largest heat source, Ursaring was the one to be Paul's primary cover. Electabuzz remained nearby, as it was also a warm source of fur that sufficiently blocked out the snow and wind from an angle. Honchkrow took another side while Torterra easily proved to be the biggest shield against the elements. With those four alone, Paul was protected in a circle of his Pokémon. Gliscor, while not being much of a viable heat source, tried to compensate by spreading its wings to keep away the snow that fell directly over its trainer.

This left Weavile with no role in preserving Paul's life. It was about to make a move until Torterra growled at it, which left the Sharp Claw Pokémon stunned enough to stay put. It turned around to face Paul's starter, who began mumbling various patterns of its name in a way to convey a game plan that only Weavile could pull off.

It was relatively simple: Weavile was the only Pokémon truly adept to this climate and was also the fastest Pokémon of Paul's team. Even if it was unsure of its whereabouts, there was no denying that Weavile was the best candidate for finding civilization in order to recruit help. Slowking already expressed in its own way that Conway had been telepathically signaled to take immediate action, so the general idea was for Weavile and Castform to reconvene with Conway (Weavile for getting the help over quickly and Castform to locate Conway's current position) and bring him to this area to retrieve Paul and take him back to the nearest town.

The plan seemed awfully time-consuming, which was why Torterra deemed Weavile the only one worthy to pull it off. Slowking, meanwhile, would watch over everyone else and did its part in protecting Paul by forming a Safeguard barrier around everyone present aside from who would go to recruit help. The Pokémon had now done all they could for Paul: it was up to Weavile and Castform to actually save his life.

Castform confidently attached itself to Weavile; the latter understood what was on the line and assured Torterra and the others that it could be counted on. With no desire to look at the gravely injured and ill Paul any longer, Weavile and Castform took off to perform the rescue mission.

* * *

Indeed, it was a long day that extended well into nighttime by the time Paul was recovered from the snow and taken to the medical facilities based in Butterbridge Town: the last town he and Conway visited before taking to the caves that eventually led to Route 216. It was a close shave, but Paul was stabilized and being well-treated. His Pokémon were also being treated, as the ones who stayed behind to protect him had to go a while enduring the brunt of the blizzard for their trainer's sake.

It wasn't a moment too soon when Conway was contacted by Slowking; he'd just finished purchasing his own winter outfit, for he knew it was all but inevitable that he would need it soon enough. He scrambled to put it on, as it was a full outfit that he needed in order to survive the brutally cold temperatures, and immediately took off to Route 216 after requesting backup once he met up with Weavile and Castform.

But now that had all come and gone… it was very late at night at this point, but Conway couldn't get himself to fall asleep until he saw for himself that Paul would make it out alright and at least wake up. For the amount of blood lost – from his _head_ of all places – Conway very well knew this incident would haunt Paul for years to come even if he did make it out alright. The odds were still against him, but there was still a chance that Paul would recover without incident.

Nonetheless, Conway had never before felt guiltier than he did at this moment. Castform and Slowking were still in his company, as Conway hated to be left alone in a time of crisis like this. Weavile was also still out, as it was the only Pokémon of Paul's who _didn't_ require treatment due to the fact that the species was built to endure harsh conditions like blizzards and sub-zero temperatures. Like Conway, Weavile couldn't help but feel awful for what had happened and was not content to return to its Pokéball until it was a sure thing that Paul would be alright.

Beyond the head injuries, Paul was in the midst of stage 2 hypothermia when he was discovered. The ends of his fingers were beginning to redden, signifying the second stage of frostbite as well. The latter at least was being taken care of, though it would surely cause some pain later on in the form of blistering and skin-peeling.

Though Conway felt terrible about letting this happen to Paul, he honestly wondered what was going through Paul's head and how he could actually let himself get _this_ bad. It was simply illogical. Of course, he had to go through every obstacle Paul went through initially in order to rescue him, so Conway knew Paul didn't have many options for shelter. Still, at some point Conway liked to think that even Paul would know a lost cause when he saw one and simply turn around and head back after a while.

Evidently, there was still much to learn about Paul, Conway realized. For the time they would be spending together, he intended to learn as much as he could… and hopefully would be able to prevent another disaster like this from happening.

What was going on in Paul's head was another matter entirely. Much like his brother, his brush with certain death left his mind in complete disarray. But unlike Reggie, Paul's subconscious was not greeted by a strange spirit with his mother's face – not that Paul would even recognize her anyway. Typically, Paul's subconscious was littered with his own life flashing by with genuine memories.

But there was something that didn't quite fit in.

It was a blurry scene, but it was obvious that the setting was within his house. Someone was speaking to him, but Paul was unable to tell who it was. What was rather jarring about this image was that the Paul seen in this alleged memory was extremely young; far too young to be able to remember much of anything, which made Paul hesitant to consider this an actual memory of his.

He couldn't have been any more than five years old in the scene. What was also odd was that by this point, another memory would've flashed in to replace what he was currently seeing; everything Paul remembered blazed by at the speed of light. But there was something about this one in particular… since Paul never remembered much of anything at such a young age, it was assumed that he was trying to figure out the meaning behind this one… and why it was so unfamiliar for him.

Still, it was nonetheless disturbing for Paul to see himself as a wide-eyed, naïve and seemingly-sensitive little boy. The young Paul was obviously upset over something, as he was beginning to tear up and do his best to hold back from sobbing. Such emotional outbursts were an alien concept to Paul – he couldn't even remember the last time he actually cried over _anything_. Even Reggie was a little disturbed over how hardened his brother had become over a short period of time.

But now more details were becoming apparent: the young Paul was holding someone's hand. Since he was the youngest in the household, Paul found it odd that his younger self was looking _down_ at who he was talking to and crying over.

Paul still couldn't make heads or tails of who his younger self was with… whose hand he was holding.

Just before the young Paul screamed out and flung himself against who he was with, a very unfamiliar voice got through; poignant and clear.

"… _Please tell them…"_

The voice was that of a woman's. And just then, the young Paul was stunned, motionless, and just as lifeless as the hand that went limp in his grasp.

The Paul of the present woke up just then, heaving in and out deeply as his blurred vision confirmed that none of what he saw was really happening. Not long after, Paul was shocked to see Conway leaning over him, as the sudden noise jolted his companion (who'd been waiting for this for hours).

Despite his worries, Conway tried his best not to show Paul just how frazzled he'd been about the situation. Instead, he gave Paul a warm, reassuring smile. "Had a bad dream, huh…?"

Even though he was awake, Paul had trouble getting a clear idea of what had happened to him… why he was stuck in bed, and why he felt like he'd just been hit by a train. "S-something like that…" he responded, though it came off sounding much weaker than Paul would've liked. It was then he was becoming aware of just how bad off he was. "Where… where am I…?"

"Back in town where we started before you went on your crazy little solo mission," Conway confirmed, now sounding a tad bitter. "I really hate myself for letting you get this bad off, but at least I had the foresight to have Castform and Slowking keep tabs on you just in case something like this happened. If they hadn't followed you, we may have not been able to reach you in time, you know."

Things were finally beginning to come back to Paul, now. "… So then… Snowpoint City…"

"You didn't make it, no," Conway said. "Not even close. I'm not sure how much you remember about what happened, but judging from what I've gotten from Slowking, it seems you fell off a cliff and sustained some head injuries before falling hundreds of feet to the ground. You were afflicted with both hypothermia and frostbite, so if you're wondering why you feel like a wreck, then… that would be why."

"All that…?" At least that explained why Paul was unable to feel or control his bare hands, not to mention the fatigue, nausea, and obscured vision. "But I don't…"

"Don't start," Conway sharply ordered. "I've got bonafide Pokémon testimonies that confirm that's exactly what happened to you. I will say I'm impressed that you got as far as you did, but in the end, that just made it even scarier for us when we had to dig you out of the snow. It was a race against the clock to save your life… all for what, your satisfying your ego? You should have…" Then Conway sighed, looking defeated. "… Alright, sorry. You just woke up and here I am insulting you already. Really, I am glad you made it out alive. You really scare me sometimes, you know? It's not the personality… it's your recklessness. I should've stood up to you better."

Though Paul could barely move, he regarded his companion's words with skepticism. "Stop acting like you're responsible for what I do," he requested. "It doesn't… make any sense; you apologizing for something I did of my own free will. You… didn't tell Reggie yet, did you…?"

"I didn't," Conway responded, shaking his head. "I've mostly been too afraid to do so right now. At the very least, I wanted to wait and see if you were going to recover from this before I could get myself to call him, but if you want me to go ahead-"

"No," Paul softly interrupted. "Don't tell him. What he doesn't know won't hurt him… it's not like Reggie's in prime condition as far as his head's concerned, either. We shouldn't bother him."

To that, Conway was confused. He obviously hadn't been told about the conversation the two brothers had before leaving Veilstone City that led to him accompanying Paul to Snowpoint to begin with. "You… sure you're okay, Paul? Reggie made a full recovery, remember? The only time he seemed a little off-kilter was when _you_ kept antagonizing him with your accusations. And for that, I certainly don't blame him for snapping."

"It's not that," Paul mumbled. "But… you said you found me in the snow, right?"

"Um, yes," Conway affirmed, wondering why Paul would ask him such an obvious thing. "What does that have to do with anything?"

He really didn't want to tell Conway about this, but Paul was hardly in the condition to have a battle of wits with his companion. "Was I… bleeding?"

Conway nodded. "Quite a bit. Remember, I said you sustained head injuries. Both your forehead and the back of your head were busted open… we suspect you might've fallen over some of the rocks that were coming from the cliff you fell from. Getting hit like that… you were probably knocked out instantly before you even hit the ground."

This was a cause for concern. Not for the head injuries, but Paul was well beyond surprised when he realized all the visuals perfectly matched what Reggie had seen in his dream days ago… the dream that was haunting enough to change his older brother's mind and convince him to keep Paul as far away from Snowpoint City as possible.

"When we found you, we thought it was too late already," Conway continued. "If it weren't for your Pokémon taking care of you, it likely would have been, so you owe them a _major_ thank-you for saving your life, Paul."

It was then that Paul noticed his Weavile was out of its Pokéball, looking down over its trainer with relief. Paul _did_ remember how he told off this particular Pokémon hours ago, so it pained him to think he would have to apologize _and_ thank this one. When he looked to Weavile, he simply nodded his head and mumbled something unintelligible. Weavile smiled and found this to be more than enough, but Conway was not impressed.

"Figures," Conway grumbled. "Even when you're helpless in bed, you won't soften up or be humble for even a few seconds. Weavile and Castform played the biggest part in saving your life since they're the ones who were able to tell us where you were. Slowking and the rest of your Pokémon stayed behind to shield you from the blizzard. Because of that, all of your Pokémon are being treated right now." He then gave a reassuring smile to Paul. "But none of them are as bad off as you. One night of rest is all they need. Same really can't be said for you…"

"I thought you were going to hold off the insults until I got better," Paul criticized. Then he paused for a moment. "How… long will that take?"

"Depends on how quickly you recover," Conway answered, sounding unsure of himself. "Everyone's different, so giving an approximation of time is difficult. But seeing as it took you… what, four days to just recover from a cold? I'd say you're going to be here for a while."

Needless to say, Paul was heavily displeased upon hearing this. "You _can't_ be serious."

"It's your own fault for being impatient… as always," Conway remarked. "You can't thoughtlessly rush into things head-on like that, you know? Something like this will end up happening, and then you'll end up losing more time than you would have if you simply decided to wait out the storm like the rest of the world did."

Paul had no way to argue this, because even he could tell that Conway was absolutely right. He had been impatient and bull-headed and that was precisely why he was in this mess to begin with. "I really don't need to hear this from you right now," he muttered.

"I'm not claiming that I'm innocent either," Conway reminded him. "I should've stood up to you better. I mean, I'm older than you…"

"I doubt you're _that_ much older than me," Paul said. "You look like you could pass for fifteen, but you act like you're… maybe half that."

Conway smirked. "So that would mean my behavior is that of a seven and a half year-old?"

Paul quietly groaned. "Stop being a nerd, please."

"Well, I have to say you're a bit off on your assumption," Conway informed. "I mean, I always saw you as eleven…"

"I'm _thirteen_," Paul clarified, sounding annoyed. "And if you make any wisecracks about how small I am, I swear I'll-"

"Color me surprised," Conway interrupted. "Wow, I had no idea we were so close."

Though hesitant, Paul felt he had to ask. "What do you mean…?"

"That growth spurt must've been more extreme than I thought," Conway mused. "Guess I owe that to my dad's tallness… ah, in other words, I'm not fifteen, Paul. I am actually about five months away from turning fourteen."

The way Conway worded that was awkward, but Paul was able to see what he meant. "Wait… then that means we're the same age?"

"Essentially," Conway affirmed. "Well, it seems I'm a few months older than you still, but you know what I mean. How interesting!"

Paul wasn't sure how to feel about this. He never once imagined Conway actually being in his age group.

"Going through all those regions… yes, I suppose you would have to be thirteen," Conway mused. "I should've considered that when I initially pegged you… a rare miss on my part. You thought I was two years older and I thought you were two years younger…"

"Yes, how fascinating," Paul said, full of sarcasm.

Conway then looked serious all of a sudden. "Yeah, but back to what we were talking about… why are you so concerned with the details about how you were found?"

Honestly, Paul hoped Conway would have forgotten about the original topic by now. It was times like this when he hated his acquaintance for being so… _smart_. "Well… you said I was found in the snow, and there was probably blood everywhere… and I looked dead already, didn't I?"

"That's right," Conway replied. "If it were me, _I_ wouldn't want to know about the specifics… that's just gross. Why do you care?"

"Because… Reggie told me that he dreamed about me ending up the same way," Paul admitted. "Just before he told you that you were coming with me a few days ago. Reggie wasn't going to let me go to Snowpoint City alone because he was afraid that dream would eventually become a reality."

This changed things. Now that Conway was aware of the dream and how eerily accurate it turned out to be, he wasn't sure what to make of the situation… whether or not it was a coincidence or if Reggie was turning into some kind of prophet.

"And I… _let_ it happen," Conway acknowledged, slumping. "I never should have let you go…"

Paul frowned at this. "Don't be such a sap. I made it out alive, didn't I? And that was all because of you. That's why Reggie made me take you along." He winced, as it hurt to admit this out loud. "To… _save_ me from what would happen."

Conway looked up, as semi-encouraging words from Paul were a rarity. "So that's why Reggie couldn't sleep that night… he feared for your safety."

"It turns out that he doesn't remember his own near-death experience," Paul added. "Because he claims that our mother was talking to him for the first time while he had nightmares. Apparently she was telling Reggie to protect me, so he figured this was the best way to do it."

Another shocking detail for Conway to absorb. "W-well… the first time, we figured it was just a near-death experience. But Reggie's totally fine now, so… why would…?"

Paul sighed and shook his head. "I honestly don't know. Personally, I think he's losing his mind. He already did so just by trying to find a new training method, so insanity seems to be the _logical_ conclusion, right?"

The emphasis on "logic" struck a chord with Conway as he tried to figure out how to respond. "Under normal circumstances, yes… I would agree with you, Paul." But just then, his expressions hardened; Paul never saw Conway look this serious before. "But this obviously isn't a normal circumstance. I mean… Reggie was _right_. If I wasn't with you right now, you'd be dead in the snow. Are you so willing to brush this off as a coincidence?"

This was a good question, Paul thought. He recalled the most recent bits of his own nightmare before he woke up… and he remembered the imagery. The younger version of himself talking to someone whom Paul could not recognize or make out, except he knew it was a woman. He only knew that because of that cryptic voice at the end of the nightmare.

However, Paul knew this had to be different from Reggie's situation. Reggie's incidents all dealt with the present or future. Paul's case was strictly the distant past… except he couldn't remember this at all. Yet it was shown with his other memories that he recalled perfectly…

"Paul…?" It was Conway's voice. Paul snapped out of it and looked to his worried companion. "Are… you alright?"

He was worried due to Paul spacing out for a moment. But Paul, in spite of his impaired judgment, decided against telling Conway about his own mental unnatural phenomenon. "… I'm fine."

"Well… you think we ought to tell Reggie about this?" Conway asked him. "Like… let him know that his premonitions were accurate?"

"No," Paul quickly said. "Let's just keep this between us, alright? It's bad enough that we're having this hanging over our heads… Reggie really needs to focus on training once his hand heals up. If we tell him about this, he'll get distracted."

Conway was apprehensive about the decision, but eventually nodded in agreement. "I suppose we should wait for more concrete evidence before we throw this on him. This is some pretty heavy stuff…" He looked to the side, seeming fearful of what might happen next. "You know… you haven't eaten since this morning."

Indeed, one of Paul's current issues was the dreaded hunger pangs. Much as he hated to be needy, Paul really didn't have a choice in this matter. "That's true… I could go for some soup…" He decided to try sitting up, but was met with an overwhelming surge of pain when he did so. Unable to bear it, Paul flopped back down against his pillow, panting.

"Aha, Paul, I wouldn't try that," Conway advised as he stood up. "Let me take care of it, okay? It's good you're awake, but try not to over-exert yourself. You're still pretty banged up."

"You seriously expect me to just lie in bed and not move?" Paul asked as he tried to control himself from writhing in pain. "How am I supposed to eat, then…?"

Conway smirked as he went off to prepare the soup. "Do you _really_ want me to answer that question…?"

Paul's eyes widened as he realized what was on his companion's mind. "No. No. You are _not_…"

"Ah, life is cruel, isn't it?" Conway said with a satisfied sigh. He went off to prepare the soup while Paul finally got a glance at the clock to see what time it was. Paul frowned as he heard a yawn from Conway clear from the other room.

"Conway, did you not sleep?" Paul asked uneasily. "It's… well past midnight. Nearly three o'clock."

"Couldn't sleep," Conway replied in a casual manner. "I wanted to make sure you were gonna be okay first and foremost. Like I said, I'm partially at fault for what happened to you."

Paul grunted in aggravation; he was not fond of that warm, safe feeling he was suddenly experiencing, akin to how he felt when he stargazed with Conway at his house. Of course, what he dreamed about still plagued him in the back of his mind, but knowing that Conway forced himself to stay up throughout the night just for his sake… it simply didn't compute for Paul.

"Would you please stop saying that?" Paul pleaded tiredly. "Seriously, go to bed. You see that I'm fine now, so there's…" He winced as he finished his sentence. "… no need to worry."

He really wanted to word that differently, but Paul was tired himself, in addition to being in pain. The best he could manage was saying whatever came to mind. The longer he remained awake in this state, the more Paul worried that he might say something he'd later regret.

"The soup's not going to make itself," Conway reminded him. "You're pretty much immobile, so you won't be making it. It's no big deal, though. Just eat what you can for now and we'll both turn in for the night. You'd better get used to this for the next few days, so try not to put up too much of a fight, okay?"

Paul grumbled, realizing what a nightmare the next week or so was going to be. It hadn't even yet occurred to him yet that he just lost a bet in addition to all of this. Right now, his immediate pain, suffering, and Reggie's accurate predictions troubled him the most.

"Try not to _enjoy_ this too much," Paul said through gritted teeth.

Conway chuckled as he returned to Paul's room at that moment with a bowl of soup in hand. "No promises." He sat next to Paul, setting the soup on a side table nearby. Getting a spoonful ready, Conway grinned at his unfortunate companion.

"Now say 'ah', please."

* * *

Reggie was never told about the incident. It wasn't long by the time his hand finally healed, meaning he was back in top condition to train with his Pokémon. Though it was in his big-brother/surrogate-parent nature to always worry for Paul, he knew he'd done the best he could given the circumstances. On the positive side, Reggie had not been haunted by visions or the sound of his mother since Paul left, and while no one had a solid reasoning for why the phenomenon happened in the first place, there was hope that perhaps that one night was simply a fluke.

The absence of the images of his fatally-wounded brother also did much to reassure Reggie.

This time, however, Reggie was not so quick to take off to parts unknown to train. He thought he had moved much too fast when he first set out, and Maylene wanted to keep an eye on him at least until his hand healed. Just as well, though, since the daycare's backyard left plenty of room for Reggie to train, even while Maylene had taken up at least a quarter of the field for her Gym Battle challenges.

In fact, she was about to end her most recent challenge. Swiftly throwing her hand down, Maylene smirked as she ordered Lucario to finish off her opponent.

"Let's wrap this up, Lucario!" She shouted out. "Bone Rush!"

Moments later, her opponent's Claydol fell to the ground. The outcome was clear to all parties involved.

"Claydol is unable to battle!" Connally, the referee again, announced. "Lucario is the winner! Ultimate victory goes to Maylene, the Gym Leader!"

Upon hearing these familiar words, Reggie halted his training procedure to witness yet another moment of Maylene getting herself a hard-earned victory. The strength and confidence Maylene exuded did much to continuously inspire Reggie to keep up his own training; that was another reason why he didn't stray from home. He heeded his younger brother's words, harsh as they were… because when it came right down to it, Paul _was_ right. Being so out of practice, Reggie was going to have to take everything he could get in order to stand a chance against Brandon. With the time limit eliminated, Reggie no longer felt needlessly pressured and genuinely enjoyed his training with his Pokémon.

Reggie smiled as Maylene, though the winner, took on a mature stance as a Gym Leader should.

"Your strategy wasn't a bad one, Ezekiel," Maylene assured, though she couldn't hide away her happy expression. "A type advantage and very well-built defenses can go far against Fighting-type Pokémon most of the time. But you need to work around the little surprises that come at every corner as well. Improvisation skills are key," she said, thinking specifically back to her battle with Conway.

The sixteen year-old young man nodded and recalled Claydol back to its Pokéball. "Sorry for letting you down, Claydol. Guess I still have a lot to learn, eh?"

Maylene nodded, but was still gentle with her words. "You're never too old to learn new things. I'll gladly have a rematch with you whenever you're ready to face me again. I really want to see your true strength!"

Ezekiel smiled wryly to his opponent. "You'll see it next time for sure, eh. We're gonna bring on the pain and show you what we're made of."

"I look forward to it," Maylene assured, waving goodbye to her challenger as he picked up his things and left. "Good luck! See you soon…!"

After the young man had left the premises, Connally smiled to Maylene, fully approving of her performance today. "Yet another impressive display of your strength, Gym Leader. It seems that was the last challenger for now."

"Good," Maylene said, sighing with relief. "Because I think I'm due for a break. That was the third challenger today, so I'm a little surprised I actually won that battle."

Connally nodded in understanding. "You've earned yourself a rest. I'll be sure to inform other challengers, should any come by."

Maylene bowed graciously. "Thank you very much." She left her post, on her way to rest, but quickly noticed Reggie admiring her in the distance. She stopped and smirked to him. "And how is _your_ training going…?"

"Just fine," Reggie happily remarked. "I couldn't help but notice that you've won again, though. You've been on quite the winning streak since my brother and Conway left."

"I suppose I have," Maylene bashfully admitted. "The battle with Conway taught me so much, which is surprising considering he was a first-timer. Even though I'm not in my Gym, I feel like all the elements are working in my favor. I've seen a new perspective, and I have a purpose in keeping up your inspiration so you can train, Reggie. I really want to see you succeed."

Reggie let out a small laugh to that. "It seems everyone, even my dad wants me to succeed. I can't deny it, though; you've been especially helpful, Maylene."

Maylene blushed and waved her hand dismissively. "Oh, stop! You've seen me win again; that's nothing so special that you should pause your own training for."

"Actually, I was hoping to train with you once you're free," Reggie requested. "Well… not _now_, of course. But… you know, after you've rested and if no other challengers come by."

The way he asked it, it almost sounded like Reggie was offering to take her out on a date. The breeder had a tendency to be suggestive in such a manner while being completely unaware of how he came off to others. Maylene especially took notice to the gestures and couldn't help but wonder what was really going on in his head.

"I would love to," she said uneasily, as the L-word often made the young Gym Leader overwhelmed with butterflies in her stomach whenever she heard or spoke it. She looked to her partner, Lucario, who was not recalled back to its ball. "How about it, Lucario?"

However, Lucario simply looked away and grumbled a bit, clearly feeling a little under-the-weather.

"What's with Lucario?" Reggie asked. "Too tired?"

Maylene looked to her Pokémon with concern. "Lucario's been like that all day. Nothing a little meditation won't solve, at least." She then smiled. "Machoke and Meditite are both pretty exhausted as well, but that's alright. I can still train with you while they rest."

"With no Pokémon?" Reggie inquired, raising an eyebrow. "Well, I guess you know what you're doing… as long as you're careful…"

Maylene let out a laugh. "I _do_ have backups, Reggie. They aren't often brought out, but I have three other Pokémon who fill in where my main three can't. This'll be a good time as any to stretch out their legs, since I'll probably need them if another challenger comes along today."

To this, Reggie smirked. "Three others… I'm sure Infernape and the rest will be more than happy to meet them. It's about time for lunch, though. For both the Pokémon _and_ us… so I'll take a break as well." He motioned to his other Pokémon to come along for a rest.

"Good idea," Maylene agreed. "We'll get fully recharged for a nice training session."

Everyone returned to the house and enjoyed a good lunch. Reggie finished his quickly in order to tend to his Pokémon around the daycare center. He was in much brighter spirits since his hand healed, making it much easier for him to perform his usual tasks.

His Pokémon patiently waited for their meals while keeping the not-so-patient young ones in order. They were kept in neat, orderly groups as Reggie fed them one-by-one. Then he finally came to the last group consisting of his Staraptor keeping a Bidoof and Kricketot in order.

While feeding them, Reggie heard an eerie noise in the background. It was very faint, but it stood out against the ambience of mother nature. As he turned around, he immediately noticed a group of beams of light shooting up in the sky far off in the distance.

At first, he was surprised. But Reggie quickly grew concerned when it occurred to him where the source of the beams most likely was: the meteors of Veilstone City. He well remembered a prior incident in that area not long ago when Ash and his friends were in the vicinity. The mysterious group of people in uniforms, and most notably their apparent commander with hair the color of the sea came to his mind. They identified themselves as "Team Galactic", and though their antics had been reported in the news, their exact motives had yet to be determined.

Reggie was about to make a move, but was startled when Lucario abruptly came outside, glaring directly at the light beams and growling.

"Lucario! What's gotten into you?!" Maylene was heard shouting from behind, and soon enough she tracked her Pokémon down. "Why have you been so-" She then followed her partner's gaze up to the sky and gasp. "Oh my…!"

"They just came out of nowhere," Reggie explained. "Just now. It's hard to tell, but I'm pretty sure they're coming from the meteors."

Maylene nodded. "Looks like it. I think Lucario felt this coming on all along… that explains the moodiness from earlier on."

As Lucario continued to glare and grumble at the unnatural phenomenon, Reggie was visibly worried. "What could this mean? Do you think it could be _them_ again?"

"Approaching the same place twice?" Maylene wondered out loud, sounding skeptical. "In broad daylight, no less… something's different about this incident."

"Oh, right!" Reggie suddenly remembered an important detail from the last incident. "When Team Galactic attempted to steal the meteors, they cut off all the power in Veilstone City."

Maylene looked around, shaking her head. "If this is just now happening, let's check inside the house and see if the power was cut off again. It's not so obvious to tell in the daytime."

"I'll check," Reggie assured, rushing back into the house. "Keep an eye on what's going on out there; looks like Lucario may know something we don't."

He reached the nearest television and grabbed the remote control, pressing the power button. Much to his surprise, the TV turned on and displayed its typical cable programming, meaning power had not been cut off at his house or any other place in Veilstone City, much unlike the last time.

"This _is_ different," Reggie acknowledged, deep in thought. "But very similar at the same time… the police department's closer to the meteor site, so Officer Jenny's probably already investigating…"

Suddenly, Maylene's panicked voice was heard from outside. "Reggie…! You'd better get out here quick!"

After switching the TV off, Reggie immediately ran back outside to Maylene. "What is it?! What happened?!"

Maylene did not respond; she merely pointed to the sky. Reggie expected she saw a change in the beams of energy, but instead was in for a rather unexpected surprise when the entire area was shrouded in darkness. A very large object in the sky was blocking out the sunlight in this particular area… but it was certainly nothing related to Team Galactic.

Both Reggie and Maylene knew this for certain, as it was made obvious that it was none other than the Battle Pyramid flying through the sky, apparently in the midst of descent.

"Dad…?" Reggie wondered out loud, clearly confused. "What the heck is he doing back? And _now_, of all times?!"

"You don't suppose he came back to investigate this, do you?" Maylene asked, shrugging.

Reggie shook his head. "Doubtful… but at the same time, I can't imagine why else he would be here now. He knows where to find Regigigas. And he couldn't possibly have found it already…"

"Whatever the case, the Battle Pyramid is landing," Maylene noted, keeping her eyes on the unique aircraft. "He obviously wants to talk to you. We should greet him, but…" The situation at hand still concerned her. "Were you able to find out…?"

"Yeah," Reggie affirmed. "We still have power. The cable's still running normally as well, so I doubt this is truly a repeat of the last incident. Officer Jenny's probably way ahead of us on the investigation."

"If we _are_ needed again, at least it'll be nice to have your dad's help," Maylene realized. "So we'd better go see him." She looked to her partner, who _still_ never took its eyes off the beams of energy emanating from the distant meteors. "Lucario, I'm sure it'll be taken care of." The Aura Pokémon paid no heed to Maylene's words, which did nothing to ease her worries. "Lucario, please…"

As the Battle Pyramid landed in a clearing not far away from the backyard, Reggie frowned. "Leave it be," he instructed, then looking over to where the other Pokémon were at, enjoying their lunch. "Infernape," the breeder calmly called out. "Do you mind giving us a little assistance here?"

Reggie's starter Pokémon looked up and was able to quickly assess the situation. With a confident look, it nodded and went over to Lucario's side, ready to restrain Maylene's Pokémon should the need arise.

"Thanks," Reggie told his starter, clearly grateful. "Just keep an eye on Lucario until we get back. We shouldn't be long." He then looked to Maylene. "This should do, right?"

Maylene couldn't help but remain slightly skeptical, but overall she knew she could trust Reggie's judgment and nodded. "Yeah. Let's go see what your dad wants."

The pair raced over to the landing site of the Battle Pyramid out in the distance. When they were close enough, they were relieved to see that someone had already stepped out. However, as Reggie and Maylene came closer, it was apparent that it was _not_ Brandon who came out of the pyramid. Instead, it was Samuel, Brandon's assistant, who was looking rather anxious for some reason.

Still, Reggie recognized his father's understudy easily. "Samuel…!" He shouted out happily. "It's been a while!"

"Oh, Reggie!" Samuel was relieved, hoping that he would get an audience promptly as soon as he landed. "Thank goodness you're home. I'm sorry; this must be incredibly short-notice and somewhat-random…"

Maylene was confused, not recognizing the young man at all. "But… you're not Brandon at all… what's going on?"

"Oh, sorry!" Reggie apologized, grinning sheepishly. "Maylene, I'd like you to meet Samuel. He works for my dad. Flies the pyramid, helps with research, referees the matches…"

Samuel smiled and nodded. "Yes, precisely…"

"And Samuel, this is Maylene," Reggie said as he turned to his father's assistant. "She's the current Gym Leader of Veilstone City."

Maylene humbly bowed to Samuel. "It's a pleasure to meet you," she greeted. "It must be a lot of work to follow Brandon every step of the way in his journey…"

"Speaking of, where is he?" Reggie inquired. "Surely he would have come out by now…"

Upon hearing that, Samuel heaved out a heavy sigh. "S-so that means you don't know where he is, either…"

"What?!" Reggie and Maylene cried out simultaneously.

"O-oh, right, you probably don't know…" Samuel figured. "It was silly of me to think he'd be here…"

"He arrived in Sinnoh without the Battle Pyramid?!" Reggie realized, aghast. "Th-that certainly explains why you didn't see it the night he left, Maylene…!"

Maylene gasped, remembering that night. "You're right! We just assumed he landed it outside the city limits… so that means…"

"Wait, wait, hold up!" Samuel pleaded, looking confused. "Are you guys telling me you actually _saw_ him?"

"Of course we did; that was days ago!" Reggie explained. "He said he came here looking for Regigigas. He heard from Byron that Paul and I weren't doing well, so he immediately came here and ended up getting the book about the Pokémon he was looking for. Since Paul and I were recovering well, dad left that night. Didn't he tell you about this, Samuel?"

Samuel sighed and shook his head. "Reggie, he didn't tell me anything. He didn't tell the other Frontier Brains anything… he didn't even tell Scott anything. All he did was leave a note with Professor Oak and left Kanto of his own accord. He went by himself and without the Battle Pyramid."

Reggie's eyes widened with horror. "He left his post and didn't tell you guys until he was already gone?!"

"Is he allowed to do that?" Maylene wondered, equally curious about the legitimacy of Brandon's actions. "I mean, abandoning your post like that without even consulting the higher-ups…"

Reggie groaned, looking exasperated. "I was so tired that night and dad worded his story in a way that made it seem like he was on some routine mission… Samuel, if I had known…"

"Don't blame yourself," Samuel assured. "Brandon's crafty like that. And normally, what he did would constitute some sort of punishment, but… Scott and the other Frontier Brains are willing to let him off if he does indeed bring back what he's searching for."

"Was this _really_ so important that he was willing to jeopardize his job for it…?" Reggie grumbled out loud. "If that's the case, then dad _has_ to succeed."

Samuel looked equally frustrated. "He's got tenure, so I don't think they could terminate him, but it won't be pretty if he doesn't follow up on his promise, I imagine." He sighed and looked to his company. "I don't suppose you have an idea of where he's at now, do you?"

"We've got an idea, but we don't know exactly where he is," Maylene admitted. "As far as we know, he's only here for Regigigas. According to the literature, Regigigas is most likely somewhere in the mountain range surrounding Mt. Coronet. Possibly the Snowpoint City area…"

"No approximate location, huh?" Samuel acknowledged with a feeling of dread. "It really should have occurred to me to search Veilstone City sooner than this. I just didn't think he'd go out of his way to come back here…"

Reggie simply shrugged dismissively. "We were very surprised to see him here, so it's understandable why you didn't check here first. It's been seven years since he was here last, you know…"

"So, if they're letting Brandon go through with this, what brings you to Sinnoh, anyway?" Maylene asked.

"I was sent to keep an eye on him," Samuel reported. "We've heard rumors of Sinnoh's unstable weather patterns, especially further up north, and even though Brandon can certainly take care of himself, we figured he might need the Battle Pyramid at some point. If he's going towards Snowpoint City, then it's probable he'll be needing backup."

At the mention of bad weather and Snowpoint City in the same sentence, Reggie remembered his only little brother was out that way as well on foot. Visibly nervous, Reggie was quick to agree. "I'm glad the committee was so thoughtful, especially after what dad did."

Samuel scratched his head, looking uncertain. "And I thought finding your dad in the city was going to be hard… I really hope I'll be able to find him in the mountains."

"Well, like I said, the Snowpoint area is where you'd want to concentrate on," Reggie suggested. "It's been less than a week since my dad took off, so he couldn't have made that much progress. I wish I could help you more, but I'm sure you know better than I do how elusive dad can be…"

"Just having a general idea of where he's at in this region helps immensely," Samuel assured. "It's good to know he stopped by here for a visit for once, too. I'm sure I'll see his mood significantly improved by the time I find him. Take it from me; he doesn't act like it, but Brandon certainly thinks about you and your brother every day."

Reggie felt he could smile sincerely after hearing that. "If it's apparent to you, then… that means a lot, Samuel. Thanks."

"I figured he had to be a big softie deep down," Maylene figured, smirking. But shortly after, the smirk faded away as she remembered what was going on before the Battle Pyramid was sighted. "But I guess this means we won't have Brandon's help to figure out what's going on in the city this time."

Samuel blinked, completely oblivious to what Maylene was inferring to. "What do you mean?"

"Just before you came here, beams of light shot up in the sky and haven't faded away ever since. We believe they're coming from the meteor site further into the city. There was an incident at the same place a while ago courtesy of this group of criminals named Team Galactic. At the time, they were trying to _steal_ the meteors," Reggie explained, now frowning as he remembered the prior situation at hand. "I remembered the meteors glowing at one point, and the power went out across Veilstone City. While we managed to prevent the meteors from being stolen, Team Galactic got away, unfortunately. They've yet to be apprehended."

"And you said you saw the beams from all the way over here?" Samuel asked for clarification. "All that does sound pretty crazy… and I can see why you'd wish your dad was here to put an end to things. He's pretty good at doing that."

Maylene pointed in the distance in the direction of where she and Reggie spotted the light beams. "We saw them right around there. It's something unnatural for sure, because it's making my Lucario very unstable right now, and that worries me…"

Samuel's gaze followed where Maylene pointed, but his expression was blank. "I don't see anything."

"What?!" Reggie couldn't believe it. He looked to where he saw the beams just recently, only to find that Samuel was right: they had completely disappeared. "But they were just there a few minutes ago…!"

"What could have happened?" Maylene wondered out loud. "We couldn't have imagined it… Reggie and I both saw them, and Lucario sensed them as well."

Samuel was helplessly clueless. "Evidently, they've receded. Have you contacted the police about this yet?"

"We assumed they were already on the case," Reggie admitted, now regretting that he didn't do so in the first place. "Now would be a good time to call them and see what the status on the situation is."

Maylene nodded in agreement. "Let's find out what exactly happened out there."

Indeed, the situation seemed to have already been resolved by the time Reggie and the others began their investigation. At the request of Officer Jenny herself, they left everything in the hands of the police and went about their lives, as there was no emergency at hand.

* * *

At Butterbridge Town, Paul and Conway never noticed anything. Conway was very dedicated in taking care of his unfortunate companion, nearly tuning out the rest of the world unless he needed to eat or shower or required additional supplies to care for Paul. Of course, Paul had no choice but to accept Conway's help.

With every passing day, Paul felt increasingly humiliated as he slowly became able to move around on his own again. It was a long and painful road to recovery, including blistering skin due to the frostbite, but Conway faithfully remained at Paul's side… much to the latter's disdain.

It took a good week and a half, but Paul successfully made a full recovery. Paul did his best to contain himself after being able to walk and move around again, but the celebration was cut short when Paul realized that he was once again stuck with Conway. He remembered that he had lost a bet.

Conway claimed, however, that he had not yet decided on the consequence yet. After purchasing a heavy coat for Paul to wear while crossing the unavoidable cold parts of Route 216, the pair continued about their way towards Snowpoint City.

They took an easier path this time; not the one commonly traveled, but there weren't any death-defying stunts that needed to be performed in order to move on.

It was still a long way to Snowpoint City, so Conway and Paul wouldn't be reaching their destination anytime soon. Conway found Plumeria Town to be the nearest area of civilization to take refuge in as another sunset came upon the duo. Knowing how brutally cold the route could get at night, Paul agreed to rest at the town until morning.

Plumeria Town was a modest settlement, to say the least. Though chilly and windy, it was not necessary for the boys to wear their winter gear. At Conway's insistence, they would reside in the best resort the town could offer them. With Conway's money, Paul couldn't exactly refuse the offer, though he was confused when Conway was quick to take off on his own after checking in, insisting to be left alone. Uncharacteristic as it was for Conway, Paul knew better than to look a gift horse in the mouth.

Paul waited for Conway in the main lodge. Though he sat on a couch where one would normally watch TV, Paul opted for reading instead. In spite of his youth, Paul possessed the old-school way of believing too much television would rot the mind. He didn't notice when Conway had finally entered the hotel and was thusly surprised when his older companion plopped right alongside him on the couch and turned on the TV immediately.

"Back already, I see," Paul dully acknowledged.

Conway merely laughed off that remark. "I have a feeling no amount of time away from me will be long enough for you, Paul! You're so good at hurting my feelings, you know."

"Not good enough, evidently," Paul grumbled through his teeth. "What were you up to, anyway?"

"Getting some business taken care of," was the vague reply as Conway was more interested in sifting through the channels on the TV. "But that's all done now. What time is it?"

Paul sighed, knowing he wouldn't be getting any more reading in as long as he was next to his chatty travel mate. He briefly gazed at the nearest clock before looking to Conway again. "Almost seven. Why do you-…" He canceled his question mid-sentence, replacing it with another after noticing something odd. "You went out to get berries? Is that it?"

Indeed, next to Conway on the couch was a sack full of berries. He had picked out several types, including Pecha, Cornn, Oran, Spelon, Belue, Nanab, and several others.

"Indeed," Conway affirmed. "That's why I took a while getting back here. Picking out just the right berry requires a great deal of concentration and patience. Since I know you're lacking in the latter's department, I decided to spare you the aggravation."

"How thoughtful of you," Paul observed, though he sounded sarcastic. "But why do you need so many? It's impractical to carry all of that while traveling, and it's going to be an uphill journey from here on out, you know."

Conway nodded in agreement while continuing to channel-flip. "I shall deal with that when the time comes. Now, be a sport and watch a little bit of TV with me, won't you?"

Paul sighed and put away his book, knowing he wouldn't be able to concentrate on reading with the background noise, anyway. "What will I have to sit through _this_ time?"

"Something relatively harmless, I assure you," Conway replied with a grin. He sighed in relief when he finally reached the channel he was looking for. "Good; I came back just in time."

As Paul finally paid attention to what was on the screen, he grimaced as he first acknowledged the lady with auburn hair sitting at a desk. It wasn't the peppy Rhonda this time, no; her hair was much shorter and in a perm to boot. Being one who shut out aspects of the outside world that weren't relevant to him or his goals, Paul wasn't certain who this woman was, but she seemed eerily familiar somehow. He couldn't quite put his finger on it. However, as the program started, he wouldn't be wondering about it for long.

"Good evening, ladies and gentleman, and welcome to another edition of the Contest Wrap-Up!" The lady greeted, full of energy and spirit. Paul's eyes widened as he realized what this program was all about very quickly. "As always, I'm Marian, your host for this show and the host for Contests all across the Sinnoh region! We've had some exciting events occurring this week, so if you happened to miss out on the action, let's go ahead and review the results, as well as the Coordinators who stood out this week!"

It was all too obvious to Paul why Conway would want to watch this program. He looked to his traveling partner with disapproval, but Conway seemed to not notice him. Paul expected as much; the older boy was madly in love, after all. "How long does this show last, again?" He asked, sounding pained already.

Conway merely shushed Paul as he continued to listen to Marian's review.

"It was an action-packed week!" Marian announced. "Our Contest in Cirribus Town brought forth some fierce competitors, but in the end, it was Zoey, a Coordinator from Snowpoint City, who came out on top over Janelle of Jubilife City! This victory has earned Zoey four ribbons, leaving her with only one left to earn before she qualifies for the Grand Festival. Having placed in the Top Four in the Wallace Cup, it's needless to say that Zoey is a Coordinator to keep your eye on, especially if you're aiming to enter the Grand Festival yourself!"

Conway merely rolled his eyes at this, unimpressed. "Come on, come on…"

"What makes you so certain they'll talk about that girl, anyway?" Paul asked, feeling the need to get some clarification. "We could be wasting our time doing this."

"Quiet!" Conway snapped, though his eyes never left the television screen. "Wait until a commercial before asking questions."

Paul grumbled with dissatisfaction as Marian continued her report.

"Don't count out Janelle so quickly," she advised. "Janelle is also a seasoned competitor with three ribbons under her belt, and rumor has it that she is registered for the next Contest, which is being held the day after tomorrow! More on that later; but all competitors should be aware that they'll be in for quite a challenge should they cross paths with this Coordinator. Cirribus Town aside, we just recently held a contest in Chocovine Town!"

"Ah, yes!" Conway's eyes lit up with hope, which only made Paul confused. Still, he knew there was no point in asking about it, because he wouldn't be getting an answer out of Conway right this second.

Both boys took notice to the screen when it was none other than Dawn, the girl who traveled with Ash Ketchum; the girl whom Conway would never shut up about, appeared on the screen. She was seen in her usual pink dress that she wore for every contest happily accepting a ribbon with her Pachirisu and Buneary showcased alongside her.

"The Chocovine Contest also showcased a rivalry blooming between Ursula, a Coordinator from Oreburgh City, and the young lady who won the competition and the Chocovine Ribbon, Dawn of Twinleaf Town! Dawn bravely fought against the odds with her Pachirisu against Ursula's Gabite and came out on top! With the Chocovine Ribbon, Dawn is now only two ribbons away from qualifying for the Grand Festival! Her rival, Ursula, also has three ribbons," Marian added; her enthusiasm never faltered. "There are many Coordinators to keep an eye on this year; some just starting out as well as seasoned veterans!"

"My beloved Dawn has scored another victory…!" Conway cried out with happiness. "Oh, how could she have pulled off a victory using an Electric-type versus a Ground-type? I pray they'll rerun the footage of the Chocovine Contest at some point! I simply _must_ see for myself how she overcame the odds!"

Paul rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I'm sure _that's_ what you'll be keeping your eyes on…"

"I can admire Dawn _and_ her contest abilities at the same time, you know!" Conway informed with a huff. Once again, he was offended that Paul would find him to be so shallow and dirty. "Anyway, now that I've got that out of my system, let's quiet down again."

Wanting the torture to end _now_, Paul slumped while Conway continued to watch the program.

"Those were only this week's events, mind you!" Marian noted. "In two days, we're in for some action as we continue our way up north to our next destination: Plumeria Town!"

Paul looked up just then, with his eyes widened in surprise and horror. "D-did she just say…?"

"As always, we look forward to seeing many Coordinators show off their skills in order to win the coveted Plumeria Ribbon! The registration deadline has passed as of this evening and we see that we'll have a large group of competitors this time around! With so many registered, we hope for an even bigger viewing audience both live at the Contest Hall and from our TV viewers like you! We look forward to seeing you there!" Marian said cheerfully. "After the commercial break, we'll discuss the popular appeal techniques used by Coordinators this year! But right now, a word from our sponsors!"

As the show shifted to a commercial, Paul glared at Conway. "Need I remind you that this is _not_ your journey, Conway," he growled lowly. "This is _mine_. And in my journeys, we do not watch _contests_, as they are nothing more than a pointless waste of time."

To that, Conway simply shook his head. "Well, the 'waste of time' is a matter of opinion, my dear friend." Paul scowled at being called such a thing, but Conway was unfazed and continued. "The fact of the matter is that there's no need to worry, for we will not be watching this Contest."

Paul was taken aback by that assurance. "So you just wanted to look at the girl on TV, then," he assumed.

Just then, Conway's expressions turned dark. Even someone as hardened as Paul couldn't help but be unnerved by the chill that ran down his spine as he looked at his creepy companion.

"I would _never_ miss an opportunity to see my dear Dawn on TV, Paul. It feels like it's been forever since we last met, so I have to take whatever I can get to curb those growing pains of Dawnsickness," Conway said with a sigh. "Besides, it helps to know where she's been so I can get a good idea of _when_ we could cross paths again one day."

Paul nodded, mostly looking uninterested. "Well, should that ever happen, how about promising to leave me alone if I can dump you off with that group?"

Conway chuckled menacingly at the offer. "If you can convince them, I will be more than happy to oblige and take myself off your hands," he said. "But speaking of promises…"

"What now?" Paul asked tiredly.

"I have decided on what the consequence will be, Paul," Conway said softly, though his smile was crooked. "Due to your losing the bet we made, that is."

Paul grit his teeth, inching away from Conway just then. "It's been so long since then… I was hoping you forgot about it."

"You were so bad off, I decided not to burden you with the duty would have to perform until you fully recovered," Conway calmly explained. "See? I'm not such a bad guy."

"That was then; this is now," Paul angrily pointed out. "I don't care why you kept me in the dark this long, but…"

Conway shrugged. "I figured if I told you early on, you would have found a way out of it by now," he admitted. "But at this point, there's no escaping it."

"Well, what is it?" Paul asked in haste. "Let's go ahead and get it over with so we can move on with our lives."

"I'm afraid that will be quite impossible tonight," Conway explained with a mocking tone of distress. "But it'll be fine, Paul. You'll know when the time is right."

Not only was it humiliating being reminded that he owed Conway a favor due to his own sheer lack of foresight and over-abundance of confidence, but it was frustrating for Paul to have the ordeal hanging over his head for yet another night. "When the time is right?! What kind of cryptic crap are you trying to pull here, Conway?!"

"Cryptic, eh?" Conway couldn't help but be amused with Paul losing his cool over this. "You won't have to wait that much longer. Just calm yourself, young one; what I have in mind is quite tame compared to the other options I initially concocted within my imagination."

"I can't begin to imagine," Paul grumbled. "And _no_, don't even tell me about the rejects. What do I actually have to do for you?"

Conway simply dismissed him with the wave of a hand and stood up. "All in good time, Paul; all in good time. I think I'll finish watching TV up in the suite, though. You can have your peace and solitude back for the night."

"You're not telling me what I have to do?" Paul asked, easily aggravated over the ordeal. "Something's going on here, isn't it?! You'd better fess up right now!"

However, Conway only shook his head as he made his way to an elevator. "I will tell you when the time is right; no sooner, no later," he calmly reminded, though Conway was shocked when he noticed that upon the opening of the elevator door, Paul was standing in his way.

"Just how much longer are you planning on keeping me in the dark?" Paul demanded to know, making sure Conway couldn't walk past him. "You're not going anywhere until you tell me what's going on."

With a yawn, Conway merely pressed a button that made the doors open to _another_ elevator right next to the one he was about to board. As he made his way towards the opening doors, Paul raced over to block the way again.

"Wow," Conway remarked with amusement. "You're really ticked off, aren't you?"

"I'm serious, Conway!" Paul insisted, though probably a little too loudly. "Even if you get past me here, I'll just follow you into our room and keep asking the same question over and over until you crack. And I know from watching the old man interview you at the hospital that it doesn't take much to break you."

After briefly flinching at that memory, Conway shrugged. "Sure, go ahead and follow me. It won't make a bit of difference, though."

Paul blinked at that remark, distracted enough for Conway to pass him into the elevator. The doors nearly closed before Paul snapped out of it and followed him inside. On the way up, Paul glared at Conway. "I'm not making an idle threat, Conway," he said. "I'm not letting you sleep until you tell me what it is I have to do for you."

Conway smirked at that. "Don't care to make any guesses yourself, it sounds like."

"Because with a mind as sick as yours, I honestly don't want to think about the possibilities," Paul retorted. "So spare my sanity just this once. I'd rather not have to think about this all night."

As the elevator dinged when the boys reached their appropriate floor, the doors opened with Conway casually stepping out and taking two keycards out of his pocket. Paul was quick to follow, matching his pace with his companion's and never once taking his eyes off of him.

"Well?" Paul blurted out, coming ever-so closer to losing his cool completely. "Why won't you say anything?"

"Here's your keycard, Paul," Conway told him, giving Paul one and ignoring his question. "Guess I don't need to tell you at this point to make sure not to lose it, right?"

Paul raised an eyebrow at Conway, unsure of why he was being advised such a thing. "We've got two, though. I can just use yours if I were to lose mine," he pointed out.

"Actually, you've only got one," Conway corrected as he stopped in front of the appropriate suite's front door. "I suspected you might try to torment me with endless questioning, Paul. So for tonight, we're in separate rooms!"

The younger trainer didn't even have time to get a full sentence out before Conway slid the keycard through the sensor, unlocked his door, then quickly rushed in and slammed the door shut.

Once it had registered in Paul's mind what exactly happened, he growled and furiously knocked on Conway's door. "Are you kidding me?! Separate rooms?!"

"See for yourself," Conway suggested from the other side. Paul looked to his keycard for a moment, wondering (hoping, even) that perhaps Conway was bluffing.

A quick sliding of the card and resulting in a red blipping light with no sound of a door unlocking answered that question, though: Conway was indeed telling the truth.

"Conway, I'm _not_ in the mood for this!" Paul yelled out as he resumed banging on Conway's door. "I can keep _this_ up for as long as I need to as well!"

"Gee, I'd hate for your noise to interrupt me trying to watch the rest of my show," Conway mused in a mockingly-troubled tone. "But I'm sure the other hotel residents will call in complaint of the noise and have you thrown out before the show's _completely_ over. Besides, you wouldn't want to sleep in here anyway, Paul; there's only _one bed_ in this particular suite."

Conway smirked, as the latter end of his statement immediately caused the beat-down of his door to cease… just as he expected.

"There's no number on this keycard!" Paul shouted out shortly after. "Which room number am I, then?"

"Your suite's right across the hall from mine," Conway called back. "Number 914. Be sure to not stay up too late, Paul; we'll need to get up bright and early if we want to make some real progress tomorrow. Plumeria Town's the last stop before we have to enter that area of the route with strong air currents."

Hearing nothing other than the sound of a neighboring door opening and then closing, Conway smirked to himself; the lenses of his glasses shined with an almost-blinding light as Conway turned the first light on in his suite.

"Everything's going according to plan," he said to himself, fully satisfied as he hopped onto his bed, turned on the TV, and resumed watching his program.

* * *

The first words exchanged between Paul and Conway the next morning were as expected: Paul asking what task he would have to perform for Conway while Conway claimed that the time was not yet right. Also expectedly, Paul got very little sleep last night as he racked his brain for ideas on what Conway had in mind for him; knowing _his_ sick mind, Paul knew he could be made to do anything. Much as he wanted to play it cool and pretend it would be a meaningless ordeal for him, Paul knew by now just how well Conway got under his skin. After all, Conway had spent _a lot_ of time thinking about what kind of torture he would enforce upon Paul for certain. He could be crafty and creative on the spot if he needed to, so Paul had every reason to worry about what he would have to do.

Brutal and ruthless as the young trainer was, Paul was one who stuck to his word. No matter what Conway would conjure up to torture him, Paul decided he would tough it out and endure the future consequences, whatever they may be. He did consider perhaps not being so quick to involve himself in any future bets, however.

After breakfast, just as Paul was about to head out in the direction that would lead him out of town, he was held back by Conway's firm grip on his jacket.

"What's the hold-up _now?_" Paul asked, heavily annoyed. "Didn't you put a heavy emphasis about making progress on the route today?"

"Indeed, it seems I forgot that we need to restock our supplies," Conway said rather absent-mindedly. "How silly of me. In particular, I'm fresh out of Poffins and I need a steady supply of those for my Pokémon. That's why I got those berries yesterday, you see."

Paul just stared at Conway and stiffly nodded. "Fair enough… now why didn't you do that _last night_ when you got the berries in the first place?"

"We got to town late yesterday, Paul," Conway reminded. "I barely had enough time to even get the berries I wanted before most of the stores closed for the night. The bakery was one such place that closed. If you'd be kind enough to follow me and maybe even help me out, I promise this'll be a relatively quick and painless process."

With a huff, Paul folded his arms and looked away. "Why should I help you? You already know I don't cook."

"I just said," Conway said with a look of bewilderment. "Help me out and we'll be able to move on sooner than we would if I'm stuck doing the work myself. Besides, this is a great opportunity for you to learn some cooking skills that, frankly, you desperately need, Paul."

Paul looked conflicted after acknowledging that. He did want to leave town as soon as possible, and he could at least admit to himself that learning even some basics of cooking would be beneficial to him in the long run. He certainly didn't want to suffer another embarrassment like he did when he spent the night at Conway's house and attempted to help make dinner.

"Fine," Paul conceded, though he staunchly refused to look anything but disgruntled about having to do such a thing. "This isn't the favor I owe you, is it?"

Conway just smiled and shook his head. "How many times must I remind you, Paul? You don't ask me; I'll _tell_ you."

The younger trainer rolled his eyes as the pair changed course for the bakery.

It surprised both boys to see that the bakery and several stovetops were occupied with trainers so early in the morning. As Paul expected, most of them were female, making him even more embarrassed to be seen in such an establishment.

"Aw, nuts," Conway muttered with a groan. "I was hoping we'd get here before the rush." After monitoring the whole area, he grinned upon seeing two stoves unoccupied right next to one another. "Aha, there we go! Let's hurry along, Paul, before someone takes it!"

Paul grumbled unintelligible ramblings while the two scurried over to the final of the two free stoves. With Paul not knowing a thing about cooking, therefore not knowing anything about how to make Poffins, Conway had to guide him through most of the steps until Paul was finally left with his own Poffin batter simmering over the stovetop.

"This is where patience is key, Paul," Conway advised. "You need to stir the concoction _just right_ so your Poffins will have the optimal texture, and therefore, a better product overall."

Paul dully nodded as he stirred his batter. "Sounds thrilling."

Conway smiled as he gently poured his pre-sliced Pecha Berry into his pot of simmering batter. Then, remembering Paul had no berries of his own, he thoughtfully dug into his berry pouch and offered him a Cornn Berry.

"Here," he offered, making Paul raise an eyebrow. "Since you're just starting out, you can have a berry that doesn't require any advanced preparation. Just pick off each little berry one-by-one and stir them in gently. It's much less work than having to slice it up like I have to do with Pecha Berries."

Paul nodded, hesitantly accepting the berry and doing as Conway instructed. "And how long does it take to make these things?"

"Not long at all!" Conway exclaimed as he stirred his ingredients at varying speeds. "The thing to remember is to not stir too slowly, or the batter will stick to the bottom of the pan and burn…"

"Got it," Paul cut in, stirring rather quickly as the tiny Cornn Berries swirled in and blended with the batter. However, Conway was aghast at what exactly Paul was doing, as was soon made evident when bits of batter went flying about randomly.

"Y-you don't want to stir it too fast, either!" Conway warned, wailing. "You're throwing batter all over the place!"

The atmosphere of this bakery plus the fact that Paul was still tired didn't alert him to his own mistake until hot batter splattered across his face. He stopped abruptly as he flinched to clean himself off, but another yelp was heard that was neither his nor Conway's.

"Hey! Watch where you're firing off that batter, you jerk!"

Both boys looked over to find an angry young girl who had gotten the brunt of Paul's negligence: batter was splattered all over her. For a girl who cared very much about her appearance, she was infuriated. But it wasn't until her apparent Pokémon – a Monferno, no less – leaned to the side (where it was previously hidden) to glare at the offending cook that really caught Paul's attention.

Paul immediately stopped stirring the batter completely, staring down at the angry Monferno beside the girl. Of course, this automatically invoked memories of the Chimchar he once owned – the Chimchar that now belonged to Ash Ketchum. Before tiring of its shortcomings, Paul had one day aimed to get Chimchar fully evolved, but no amount of his brutal training made a difference.

To this day, he still couldn't figure out what it was he was doing wrong. But he took solace in the fact that Ash wasn't faring any better than he did when it came to training Chimchar; if anything, Ash was doing a worse job in Paul's eyes… if the previous battles were anything to go by, of course.

"Ahem!" The girl coughed, specifically aiming her scornful look at Paul. "My face is up _here_, you pervert!" She had obviously mistaken Paul's glance to be towards her developing chest, which she wasn't exactly modest about showing off with her low-cut sleeveless top.

Paul frowned as he faced the girl; interestingly enough, her short-cut, curly, fiery hair very well matched her Pokémon's flaming tail. The contrast in the color scheme was her piercing, accusatory green eyes.

"Don't flatter yourself," he assured, though not in a kind tone. "I was looking at your Pokémon."

"Yeah yeah," she brushed off the assurance, completely unconvinced. "What an excuse. Just like every boy I meet. The way you're flinging that Poffin batter around, you must be a beginner. Otherwise you'd know better than to treat me with disrespect," she said darkly.

Taking notice to the situation and finally making the connection, Conway gasped, drawing the attention of both the girl and Paul. "Oh, of course…! You're Janelle of Jubilife City, aren't you? They had footage of your Contest in Cirribus Town last night!"

With a nod, Janelle confirmed Conway's suspicions. "Nice to know not every guy around here is a total dimwit. So you're aware of my status."

"Three ribbons, indeed," Conway remembered. "You're well on your way to the Grand Festival."

While Paul rolled his eyes, doing his best to take his mind off the situation, Janelle smirked at Conway's compliment. "That's right. I'm going to be in this town's Contest tomorrow and on my way to earning my fourth. That Zoey twit isn't here to stop me this time, so it's a guaranteed win for me!"

"It's all but an inevitability!" Came another voice; another girl's, who was cooking at the stove beside Janelle's. "As her manager, I'll make it a certainty that she wins the Plumeria Ribbon!"

Paul and Conway both leaned over to see a shorter, more modest brunette with longer, flowing hair and a giant pair of glasses grinning at the boys. Beside her was her apparent Pokémon: Gible.

After adjusting his glasses, Conway shrugged. "Okay, unfortunately I don't recognize you."

"The name's Mina!" She said adamantly. "And like I just said, I'm Janelle's manager! I'm going to make sure she makes it to the Grand Festival!"

"Indeed," Janelle concurred. "See, Mina isn't in this gig to win it for herself; she's mowing down the competition so I come out to be the victor. The incident in Cirribus Town was just a fluke. We won't let the same mistake occur twice."

Paul shrugged after hearing the explanation. "Sounds like a cheap strategy, if you ask me."

Conway nodded in agreement. "The true strength of a Coordinator comes from within their own being; non-reliant on the help of others. If you ask me, Mina should actually try to win for herself for once rather than be your doormat. I assure you, the competition would be much more fun that way."

"Ugh! As if I'm going to hear this moralistic preaching from a bunch of chauvinists _again!_" Janelle barked out, clearly upset with both of the boys. "What weight do your words hold, anyway? How many ribbons have you two earned?"

Before Paul opened his mouth, Conway cheerfully replied with, "Absolutely none! We're beginners!"

"Excuse me, I _never_ had the intention of being a Coordinator," Paul cut in, sounding annoyed. "Don't drag me into this. It's your own fault for preaching to them."

"Really?" Mina sounded surprised. "Then what are you even doing here?"

"Making Poffins for this loser," Paul replied, gesturing to Conway. "Just because I'm making them doesn't mean I'm-"

Janelle smirked and pointed to Paul's pot on the stove. "Looks more like you're cooking up charcoal to me!"

Paul glanced down and indeed saw that due to his negligence and lack of stirring, all of his Poffin batter had stuck to the pan and was on its way to turning black. He hastily took the pot off the heated stovetop and ditched his failed attempt at a Poffin in a nearby garbage can.

"So your lecture is completely meaningless," Janelle deducted as Paul returned to his station. "Our strategy is unbeatable, and newbies like you can't do anything to prove otherwise!"

Conway sighed in a somewhat-defeated tone before looking to the girls, shrugging. "Guess I'll have to prove you wrong tomorrow at the Contest."

"… Wait, _what?!_" Paul was aghast; he was never told this. "You just said last night that we weren't going to have anything to do with that Contest!"

"Correction: I said we weren't going to _watch_ the Contest," Conway reminded, smirking. "I never said anything about actually participating in it. That was the other thing I busied myself with while I was out yesterday evening," he mentioned. "Not just getting berries… but getting Contest Passes and registering the both of us for the Plumeria Town Contest… just before the deadline." He then pulled out Paul's dark blue PokéDex and handed it to its owner. "By the way, I sort of took this when you weren't looking yesterday so I could register you. Sorry about that; you can have it back now."

Paul could feel the color draining away from his face as the words sunk in. "Wh-why…" He sputtered out before glaring at Conway with all his might. "Why would you do this to me?! You know I'm not a Coordinator and I think Contests are a waste of time…!"

"It may seem cruel, and I know it'll sting at first, but I think you'll have fun," Conway said, sounding eerily honest for once. "Besides, not only is it too late to ditch out of the competition, but this just so happens to be the favor I have decided you must do for me."

It was almost too much for Paul to take; he was feeling faint. "So you mean the favor is…"

"… You must participate in a Contest with me," Conway finished, nodding. "And I want _effort_ from you, dear friend, or else I'll just register you up for more and more until you take it seriously."

There was a long period of silence from Paul before he managed to utter "I hate you _so much._" under his breath.

"Since the Contest is tomorrow, we've got precious little time to get our costumes ready, as well as choosing our Pokémon who will perform in the Appeal and Battle rounds," Conway informed him. "But I think you and I will be the most fantastic of rivals in the Contest gig."

"Uh, I don't _think_ so," Janelle cut in. "The Plumeria Contest isn't meant to showcase your little debut into the profession; it's meant to showcase _my_ triumphant victory and fourth ribbon."

"Not to mention you guys decided to start out a bit late if you wanted to reach the Grand Festival," Mina pointed out. "There aren't that many Contests left before then, you know."

None of this deterred Conway from smiling, though Paul still looked as if he were ready to jump off a cliff and die for real this time. "Well, no harm in getting our feet wet!" He reasoned, completely optimistic and lighthearted. "I always dreamed of being a rival of Paul's, and this will be my key to see what it'll be like."

After a mutter of "You are _so lame_," from Paul, Janelle shook her head and smirked at Conway; Mina was quick to mimic her agent's movements and expressions.

"Too bad, nerd," she said tauntingly. "You've officially ticked me off with your preaching, so I'll make it my personal business to crush both of you before you even make it past the Appeal round!"

"That's right!" Mina agreed. "Together, we'll mow _both_ of you down."

Conway did not expect things to go this way; therefore, he tried his best to remain professional while trying to fend the ladies off. "Girls, girls… honestly, don't you think it'll make you look bad if you set your sights on beginners like us? I mean, you'll seem like bullies…"

"You shouldn't have made the mistake of throwing your nasty hot batter on me," Janelle argued, pointing at Paul specifically. "You want enemies? Well, you've got them!"

Paul scoffed at the accusation. "Like I even care what you want to prove. Even if I'm tied down to this obligation, that doesn't make me a Coordinator. I couldn't care less about you girls." He sharply glared towards his older companion. "I care much more about _destroying_ my so-called 'dear friend' here for lassoing me into this in the first place."

"That's the spirit!" Conway said with glee, which threw Paul off for a moment. "See? This _is_ going to be fun!"

"Only if you're a masochist," Janelle cut in. "You two don't have a choice in the matter, unfortunately. You've got yourselves some rivals to contend with." Mina nodded in agreement to this.

Conway sighed and looked up helplessly. "I really wanted this to be a special rivalry with myself and Paul… looks like we'll have to get these two out of the way first."

"Don't talk to me like I'm your pawn!" Paul shouted back. "I'll just throw this competition in the first round and spare myself any further humiliation!"

"Ooh, you wouldn't want to do that," Conway warned gently. "Like I said, Paul, I want _honest effort_ from you. If I don't see you taking this seriously, then consider yourself officially having a double-life as a Coordinator, because I'll put you in Contest after Contest until you shape up. That's the nature of the game, and why you shouldn't have made that silly bet in the first place."

To that, Paul growled. He was definitely certain never to involve himself with any bets from now on. "Fine, then I'll crush you in this Contest! Will that make you happy?!"

"Ecstatic," Conway affirmed. "But that won't be happening, and you'll have to make sure you get past these girls and…" It was just then that Conway noticed Janelle's Monferno and smirked upon making the mental connection. "Well, isn't _this_ ironic."

Janelle was quick to look defensive; even if she'd just met this young man, there was an eerie air about Conway that was unsettling for both her and Mina. "Wh-what are you talking about?" She asked.

Despite Paul's gestures that tried to tell Conway to clam up about the topic, the latter took no notice to them. "My dear friend here had a Chimchar not long ago," he explained. "It belongs to another trainer now, but the way he trained it at the Hearthome City Tag Battle Tournament, I have a feeling he was aiming to evolve his Chimchar all the way to Infernape before he changed his mind."

"_That_ tournament!" Mina said aloud with a gasp. "I remember that now! Janelle and I watched it on TV!"

Paul groaned, _really_ wanting to keep his personal details to himself, because as he expected, the girls became more and more interested in him the more they learned about his history as a trainer.

"Hey, yeah," Janelle realized, pointing at Paul specifically. "Weren't you the winner?"

"He was _one_ of the winners," Conway clarified, angering Paul even more. "And I was a runner-up."

Mina nodded vigorously, taking out a small book with notes she had written within it. "Yes, it seems that both of these boys are from Veilstone City, but they were on opposing teams. Paul was partnered with a boy from Pallet Town, all the way from Kanto." She then looked to Conway. "And unless I'm mistaken, you were partnered with a Coordinator from Twinleaf Town; the same one who won the Aqua Ribbon at this year's Wallace Cup."

Conway sighed happily upon remembering his fond memories with Dawn. "Yes, my lovely little Dawn… I'm so thrilled things have gone well for her." He then smirked. "You're certainly keen on memorizing details, Mina."

However, Mina could not bring herself to take the compliment. "It's all part of how I lead Janelle to victory. Besides, isn't it rather pathetic of you to join a Contest for the sake of impressing that girl? I'm sure she could find a better guy out there than _you_."

"Hey, that was unnecessary!" Conway shot back, feeling offended. "I'm genuinely interested in Contests… Dawn just happens to be a big part of my inspiration!"

Janelle rolled her eyes. "Whatever. We don't need your life story. Mina's an ace when it comes to digging up the dirt on my rivals, so I know she'll do a fine job with you two without needing to ask any further questions."

"Does that mean you can let us finish up in peace, then?" Paul asked tiredly.

"Sure thing," Mina affirmed, taking her pot off the burner and turning it off. Janelle did the same for her own batch.

Both boys looked confused, as their batter was not yet fully prepared, but soon enough the girls showed their future rivals that they meant business by dumping the hot contents of their pans over the heads of each boy, leaving them howling in pain as they sauntered out of the bakery.

"If you thought that _burned_, just wait until you see what we have in store for you tomorrow, newbs!" Janelle called out tauntingly.

Mina nodded and looked back at Paul and Conway with a smirk before leaving. "Yeah, put your money where your mouth is and see if you can defeat our impenetrable strategy! We'll see you at the Contest!"

When the panicking stage was over, both Paul and Conway rushed to clean themselves, certain they were covered with first-degree burns _at least_ from the hot batter poured over them.

"Who knew girls could be _this_ feisty?!" Conway wailed, scrubbing his hair furiously. "Man, and I just showered before we got here, too!"

"Will you quit being such a princess for once and focus?!" Paul growled as he cleaned himself off. "Look, I think this favor is a _heinous_ one, but for the sake of revenge, I'll cut a truce with you until the Contest ends. If those brats want a challenge, we'll _give_ them the challenge of their lives. Experienced or not, you and I both know we can out-battle those barbies."

Conway smirked, happy that Paul was finally getting his head into the game, albeit in these unfortunate circumstances. "I'm not one who would strike back at a woman, but for those two, I think I can make an exception. I really did want to see how a rivalry between us would work, though…"

Paul shrugged nonchalantly. "We'll eliminate the girls first. Provided we can do that successfully, then you can have your little 'rivalry' fun with me if that's what you really want. Honestly, Conway… I'll never understand you."

"Better you focus on understanding Contest basics right now anyway," Conway pointed out. "We've got less than a day to go. We need to pick out our costumes, which Pokémon we'll use, and what our strategies will be for both the Appeal and Battle rounds."

He was knee-deep into this commitment, Paul knew. Much as he loathed thinking about it, he would actually have to take this Contest seriously so he would be able to move on with his life and to his Snowpoint City Gym challenge.

* * *

The rest of the day was spent preparing for the Contest. Conway had decided ages ago on which of his Pokémon he would be using, as he had on-and-off experimented with appeals, hence he was almost completely set. Once he received his outfit from the costume shop and put the appropriate seals on his ball capsules, Conway was set to focus on success.

Of course, he did have to spare some time explaining to Paul about how Contests worked specifically, as Paul never cared to learn the details. He made sure Conway had no influence whatsoever on his decision when it came to costumes, and though it baffled him at first, he reluctantly conceded to encase two of his Pokéballs with ball capsules and seals. Paul had decided on a running theme, and was given a couple of pointers from Conway that there were two basic surefire ways of getting a good reception on the Appeal round:

"The first thing is, own a Milotic and use it in the Appeal round. Do that and it's virtually guaranteed that you'll move on to the next round. My calculations so far state that no one with a Milotic has actually _failed_ to get past the Appeal rounds before," Conway said. "Even if Milotic just _sits there_ and sparkles, everyone becomes enamored with it… including the judges."

"Thanks for wasting a whole minute of my life on your useless geek babble," Paul muttered. "All of that is irrelevant since I don't own a Milotic."

Conway blushed and nodded. "Well, that's true! I just thought you should know… hopefully no one in tomorrow's Contest will own one, or we'll be in trouble. Thankfully, they're incredibly rare."

"Quit wasting my time with your What-Ifs," Paul complained. "Is there anything valuable that's relevant to me that I need to know?"

"Ice Appeals," Conway said simply. "Short of Milotic, many of the most awe-inspiring Appeals have had something to do with ice. So it's recommended that you have an Ice-type Pokémon or at least an Ice-type move on hand. Make sure you're creative, though!" He reminded. "Many Coordinators have caught on to this, so you don't want to be caught giving a mediocre performance. Chances are good that you'll be compared to several other Ice-related performances."

Paul nodded. "Much better. I was planning on using Weavile for the Appeal round, anyway."

"Excellent!" Conway exclaimed, overjoyed that Paul seemed to take this a little more seriously. "Do you have an appeal in mind?"

"I do, but I'd rather you not watch me while I practice," Paul requested, sounding distant. "Besides, you've got your own appeals to work with. Don't tell me _you're_ doing an Ice-type appeal too."

Conway smiled awkwardly and looked towards the evening sky. "Well, technically it is… ice _is_ involved, but it isn't the only element. You'll see tomorrow, Paul. I think you'll like it."

"You say that expecting for me to actually care," Paul said with disbelief. "Hasn't it gotten through your head yet? I'm only doing this because I'm morally obligated to. I'm a man of my word."

"And with any luck, this little lesson will prevent you from doing any more stupid stunts!" Conway said optimistically. "At least that way, you won't be plaguing poor Reggie with any nightmares anymore."

Paul grumbled as he thought of his older brother. "He'd better be sticking to his training… if he's slacking off and watching TV tomorrow, there's a chance he might catch me on that Contest."

"Won't _that_ be an interesting story," Conway mused. "I'm sure he'd love to know how his precious baby brother ended up in a pointless, useless Contest!"

"That would require us telling him that his nightmare came true," Paul harshly reminded him. "And we agreed we would keep that between us, didn't we?"

After a moment of silence, Conway sighed and bowed his head. "You're right. But we'd be too obvious if we called him and requested that he not watch TV at all tomorrow."

Paul simply shook his head. "I've got a plan, so don't worry your little head about it. Let's just keep our heads focused in the game so we can _get this over with_. I want to see those two girls in tears by the time the Contest is over."

"For once, I agree with you," said Conway. "They crossed the line this morning… so just keep yourself pumped up for the big day tomorrow."

Paul nodded to his traveling companion before looking up at the sky. "I'd like to perfect the appeal I have in mind before night fully sets in. If Ice-type appeals are as common as you say, I have to make sure mine stands out."

Conway smiled at Paul. Though he knew deep down that Paul was forcing himself to tolerate this tournament, it warmed his heart knowing that he was taking it better now than he had earlier. "I'll be writing out my own strategies for the battle portion, then… would you like to join me after you're finished perfecting your appeal?"

"I'll pass," Paul said casually. "Making strategies for each other against the Gym Leaders is one thing… but don't forget we're actually opponents in the Contest."

"True," Conway recalled, somewhat downtrodden. "But I still say we work together to take those two down… then we'll settle the score in the finals. How about that?"

Paul smirked. "Sounds like a plan."

Conway waved to Paul as he returned to the luxury hotel. "Make sure you don't stay up too late!"

The smirk on Paul's face faded as he stared down at the ground. "Look at me, getting myself into this mess… I'm losing my touch." His expressions hardened, remembering what was on the line. "No matter. I've got everything under control. I'll make the best out of this bad situation… somehow."

* * *

The following day was bright and sunny: perfect for traveling to the remote Plumeria Town to partake in the town's Contest. Contestants and audience members alike came in droves. Coordinators took their position backstage while the audience seated themselves in the multi-rows stands circling across the open-domed Contest Hall. The lights and decorations had all been set up; it was only a matter of time before the competition would get underway.

Finally, the audience let out a loud cheer when the Contest judges appeared on the stage to promptly take their seats. Not far behind them was the auburn-haired beauty adorned in yellow: Marian, the announcer.

A spotlight shone down over her; as it was an open-domed Contest Hall, the lightning was not as dramatic as is usually was in other contests, but it was more than made up for when multiple spotlights of differing colors shined down upon the glorious host after the main one.

"As we travel northbound throughout the Sinnoh region, the elements prove to be a challenge!" Marian shouted out with her microphone. "Coordinators and audience members alike have traveled far and wide to this unique and remote location to put on a show and warm our hearts! With that said, it's Contest Time! Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Plumeria Town Contest…!"

As the audience cheered aloud, the participating Coordinators watched in the waiting room via several small televisions installed from the ceiling.

Conway sighed as he watched the opening ceremony all in his lonesome, though his Castform was right at his side. After a quick glance, he noticed Janelle and her Monferno (as well as Mina and her Gible) at the other side of the room with their eyes glued to one of the many TV screens. Despite that, both female Coordinators had that look of determination on their faces.

As for Conway, he couldn't help but feel the jitters much like how he felt prior to his Gym Battle with Maylene. Remembering he had won that battle calmed him a bit, but a Contest was an entirely different ballgame. While he and Paul could assist each other on strategy with traditional battling, both were novices in Coordinating. It didn't help that Paul couldn't care less about the profession, either.

"Guess I made it in time after all," Paul said with a grumble, suddenly appearing next to Conway and taking a seat next to him. Weavile was also by this side. After taking a moment to analyze his outfit, Conway tried his best to not sputter into a fit of giggles.

"My oh my, Mister Ninja!" He said tauntingly. "You ninja'ed your way here just in time! Looks like it was a tight fit. Is that why it took you so long to change?"

Paul rolled his eyes; indeed, his costume for the contest was anything but flashy, but it certainly was drawing attention from other Coordinators, as it was outlandish: an all-black, fully skin-tight ninja uniform complete with a belt, kneepads, and other simple accessories. Most notably, Paul was able to cover most of his face with the fabric of his clothing, as if he were going out of his way to conceal his identity. Since he was talking to Conway, however, he removed the fabric that covered the lower half of his face.

"There's a reason I chose this outfit," Paul calmly explained. "This is my only hope for remaining anonymous should anyone I know tune into this Contest on TV."

"Goodness, you're right," Conway acknowledged. "I even called my sister last night so I'd make sure she would at least watch the contest. I called my cousin, too… though he wasn't home. Had to leave a message. Guess you really don't want Reggie to know about this, huh?"

"Not in a million years," Paul swore. "And I'd really prefer that the idiot and his group don't watch this trainwreck either."

Downtrodden, Conway sighed. "Much as I respect your wishes to conceal your mysterious double life from Ash, it would mean that Dawn won't see me…"

"It's not a double-life!" Paul snapped back. "This is a one-time deal; after this, I'm never entering a Contest _ever again_."

"And you really think your little ninja disguise will save you," Conway mused, smirking. "Oh, this is going to be fun…"

Paul shook his head and grunted. "You should talk, space geek. What's with you, anyway?"

Conway's outfit consisted of a long, off-white robe with padded shirts and a belt underneath, as well as a pair of tight-fitting pants. The robe also had a hood attached, which was more than large enough to cover the entirety of Conway's head. If one didn't know better, one would say Conway was dressed just like a certain space vigilante; a warrior of peace to bring order to the force.

"I am dressed so all will see the light," Conway said mysteriously, grinning at Paul. "It is my will; my journey, young trainer."

"You're not making any sense," Paul pointed out. "Maybe I shouldn't have asked."

Conway merely chuckled darkly as he refocused himself on the TV. "Much anger in you, I sense," he told Paul quietly. "… Like your father."

If there weren't so many live witnesses present, Paul sworn he would have lost it then and there and killed Conway on the spot.

"Our winning Coordinator will of course receive the coveted Plumeria Ribbon!" Marian said in a routinely fashion. "One fifth of the puzzle all Coordinators must complete in order to qualify for this year's Grand Festival! We're nearing the later portion of this season's tournament; so look alive, everyone!"

Marian then turned to the table where the judges sat. As per usual, she introduced each one.

"And now, it is my honor to introduce to you our panel of esteemed judges!" Marian shouted out.

The first one introduced, as always, was a middle-aged man in a red suit and a black bowtie. He also wore one of the most coveted ribbons of all regions: the Gorgeous Royal Ribbon.

"First up is the chief of the Pokémon Activities Committee, Mister Contesta!" Marian introduced.

Contesta, _Raoul_ Contesta, that is, nodded and smiled to the crowd. "It's always a pleasure, Marian! I know with the competition heating up as the days go by that we'll see a spectacular series of appeals and battles from these hard-working Coordinators!"

Moving on, Marian introduced the judge sitting next to Contesta: a shorter, portly man with squinted eyes in a generic business suit. "Next is none other than the head of the Pokémon Fan Club: Mister Sukizo!"

"Plumeria Town is… _remarkable!_" Sukizo said, succinct as always.

"And finally, Plumeria Town's very own and oh-so dependable Nurse Joy!" Marian announced, gesturing towards the modest Nurse Joy at the end of the row. She looked no different from any other Nurse Joy one would encounter in any region, though the cross on her hat was gray in color.

Giggling at Marian's description of her, Nurse Joy nodded and smiled to the others. "Times like this when the competition heats up are when the Coordinators bring out everything they have to the table! I'm really looking forward to this event, and I hope you all are just as excited as I am!"

"Now that you've met our judges, let's proceed onwards to the first round!" Marian called out. Just as she said that, several Coordinators in the waiting room were standing up. Taking note of this, Paul and Conway also stood up. After a brief check, Conway was curious when he could no longer spot Janelle or Mina.

"Of course, this is our Performance Round, where one Pokémon per Coordinator puts on a show in hopes of dazzling us with their boundless talent!" Marian continued. "So please put your hands together for our first contestant…"

As everyone eyed the curtains where each Coordinator would come out from, the curtains slowly opened.

"Miss Mina of Floaroma Town!" Marian finished. The curtains pulled away to reveal the modest brunette still in her glasses, but now in a turquoise, sparkling two-piece dress with matching boots. Hot pink sashes accented her outfit in addition to two silver bracelets. In her hand was a Pokéball in its capsule, ready to be let out.

"So the crony is going first," Paul acknowledged. "This must be some part of their strategy."

"The order is usually randomized in Contests, Paul," Conway informed him cautiously. "But I will admit I have a very bad feeling about this…"

Meanwhile, Mina smirked and dashed out to the stage, throwing out her Pokéball. "Alright, Gible! On the set…!"

After an impressive blast from the Party Seals Mina attached to her Ball Capsule, Gible did several full 360-degree spins before landing perfectly on the stage. The crowd cheered for its energetic entrance.

"Let's begin, shall we?" Mina suggested with a smirk. "Start off with Stealth Rock!"

Several rocks began protruding from the stage, surprising Marian, the judges, and all of the audience members as they rose up from the ground and pointed directly at the one who summoned them: Gible.

"Follow up with Dragon Rage!" Mina ordered, and Gible complied, spinning around and spewing flames at the pointed rocks, that seemed to be ready to attack Gible at any given moment. The rocks looked even more fearsome than before. Just then, the rocks all at once came at Gible, but Mina smirked, for this is what she planned.

"Now, destroy them all, darling!" Mina cried out. "Spin around and crush those rocks with Dragon Rush!"

Having been surrounded in the precarious situation all this time, Gible was more than ready to get out of the area. Enveloping itself in a gorgeous glow of blue energy, Gible jumped up and flew around the rocks in a circle, propelling itself against each rock to keep up its momentum while its pure energy turned the flaming rocks into pure dust.

"Now clean that mess up!" Mina said. "Sand Attack!"

Gible danced around the stage, sweeping up the powdered remains of the Stealth Rock attack and enamoring the crowd with the performance. After Gible finished, it back-flipped straight towards its trainer and both posed to signify that their Appeal was complete.

Contesta nodded in approval of the performance. "An amazing example of how such amazing power can come in a small package! Gible was so powerful and so reminiscent of a Garchomp! Excellent performance!"

"Not to mention, it was remarkable!" Sukizo added.

"I'll admit I was nervous at first, but the trust between Pokémon and Coordinator is so well-represented here that I must say that was one of the most breathtaking performances I've ever seen!" Nurse Joy commented. "A lovely performance of trust _and_ power!"

Conway intently watched Mina's performance the entire time, looking serious. "For a lackey, she certainly has the talent to make it on her own… makes me wonder why she's so intent on pushing her friend towards success instead."

"I guess we'll see just how powerful she really is, and if she's worth sacrificing the other girl's career over," Paul mused, though not nearly as immersed into this as Conway was. "And since when do they announce Coordinators by name, anyway?"

"They… always do that," Conway told him, blinking in confusion. "I guess you must have not known that if you were so keen on hiding your face… it's not going to matter once you're on the set."

"I'll just have to hope no one relevant to my life is watching TV right now," Paul grumbled just then. "Idiot ought to be training for the old man's battle, anyway… why are my plans constantly ruined?!"

Conway only smirked. "Impossible to see, the future is. And perhaps, even the present as well!"

Paul glared at his companion for that remark. "No more psycho-babble out of you, loser."

"Now, let's continue the show!" Marian shouted out, and indeed, the Appeal rounds continued to commence as Coordinator after Coordinator left the waiting room and reappeared on the television. Very few who already went out returned to the waiting room, so Mina was never seen again live by the boys.

After numerous appeals, including a girl with a Dunsparce, a boy with a Qwilfish, a geek much like Conway with his Porygon-Z (which unfortunately flopped in the Appeal round when the electric attacks proved to be too much for the audience to handle), and an older woman with her Sentret (among many, many other Coordinators not worthy of note), the Appeal round was soon coming to the homestretch.

Finally, Janelle appeared on the screen. Both boys were dead silent as they watched their ill-tempered forced-rival come out from the curtains.

"Up next is the fiery-spirited young lady from Jubilife City, Janelle!" Marian announced.

Janelle stepped up to the plate, ready to go. Her white trench coat lined with a golden trim and jewels all of the warm-colored hue caught the attention of many people in the crowd. Added with jewelry, a headband, an even more revealing and low-cut top, and bell-bottom pants, Janelle indeed looked like she stepped out from a time portal a few generations back.

But the retro look was still socially acceptable, as Janelle garnered applause before even doing anything.

"She _must_ be one to look out for," Conway noted. "If she's already getting this much praise before even doing anything…"

Back on the stage, Janelle posed before throwing out her Capsule-covered Pokéball.

"Dazzle them, Monferno!"

With a mix of red and blue flames coming from the Seals, Monferno burst out of its Pokéball and flew through the flames as if they were nothing. The crowd was impressed with Monferno's endurance.

Before it even landed, Janelle called out her first order.

"Use Will-O-Wisp over the stage!" She instructed. "Spread it out like a checkerboard!"

Still in the air, Monferno twirled around and summoned blue-colored small flames that surrounded the Playful Pokémon. With pure skill, Monferno aimed the Will-O-Wisp flames to form a pattern on the stage floor; most of them landed in the crevices that were initially created by Mina's Stealth Rock appeal.

Surprisingly, the flames that landed in the crevice continued to burn even more brightly than the ones that didn't, which seemed to surprise the others with this flaw in logic.

"It seems many of our Coordinators today are using the field itself as part of their strategy!" Marian noted. "Let's see what Monferno plans to do with this!"

"Turn up the heat with Heat Wave! Let's make sure this fire doesn't die!" Janelle shouted out with excitement. "And when you've got your stage set, do your Double Kick routine!"

From its mouth, Monferno unleashed a powerful wave of heat that only made the fire grow larger. The flames spread to the point to where it almost seemed reminiscent of a dance floor.

"It's getting hot in here!" Marian remarked, fanning herself. "But look at Monferno go, everyone! No fear whatsoever in this contestant!"

Indeed, Marian was right. Just as the stage of flames was set, Monferno unleashed a unique Double Kick routine that involved it breakdancing dangerously over the fire-tiled stage. The crowd watched in awe as Monferno expertly showed off its speed, skill, and flair within the burning depths of its innate element.

"And we'll finish it up with Vacuum Wave!" Janelle decided, pointing at Monferno as the dance routine came to an end.

Monferno jumped and began to twirl around in the air, progressively faster until it was merely an orange blur in the eyes of the audience.

"What magnificent speed!" Marian cried out.

"Make sure that fire goes out beautifully, Monferno!" Janelle ordered. "Release your energy!"

Monferno stopped spinning at that moment and spread its arms out forcefully to release the strong winds it had collected. The fire curved inward toward Monferno as it almost grew out of control, but was swiftly snuffed out as Monferno punched each flaming area with a wind so fierce that not a single flame could withstand it.

Landing back onto the stage, Monferno and Janelle made identical poses, with smug and confident looks as they pointed diagonally in the air.

After the roaring cheers of the audience died down, the judges began to give their opinions.

"An appeal like this goes a long way in showing just how potent the combination of a Fire and Fighting-type Pokémon can be!" said Contesta. "The burning heat, Monferno's energetic performance, and using its own power to end the show… an exciting and enjoyable watch from beginning to end! Congratulations!"

"Hot, but still remarkable!" Sukizo complimented.

"If there was ever a sign that the competition was heating up this late in the game, this Coordinator and her Monferno would be that sign!" Nurse Joy exclaimed. "Clearly they're in perfect rhythm with each other and I greatly admired the performance!"

Satisfied with the reception, Janelle smirked and nodded before turning around to return to the backstage area with her Monferno. Meanwhile, Paul and Conway seemed a little more concerned than before after seeing such a well-done appeal.

"I _guess_ if I had to say one nice thing about that temperamental girl, it's that she definitely trains her Monferno better than how that moron trains Chimchar," Paul admitted. "But that just leads to an even more depressing scenario knowing the more capable trainer is in the wrong-"

He paused upon noticing that Conway was no longer at his side, but rather about to leave the area. "Hey, where are you going?!"

"Haven't you been paying attention?" Conway teased. "The Appeal round is almost over, so you and I are up next. You can stay there and watch me if you'd like."

"I'd better invest my time taking a nap before it's my turn to go up," Paul snapped back. "Break a leg out there, Conway. _Really_."

"Ah, it wouldn't be the same without your loving and caring support!" Conway cheerfully said, as if he took that as a compliment. He quickly vanished into the hallway where he would wait until he would be called out. Despite Paul's claims, he now paid attention to the television more than ever… almost as if he were eager to see if Conway would either mess this up or perform admirably, like he did in his Gym Battle against Maylene (which he still never gave Conway the satisfaction of knowing personally).

* * *

"Phew, what a tough act to follow!" Marian noted, still talking about Janelle's performance. "Well, we only have a couple of contestants left before we can move on to the next round! So everyone give a big hand for Conway of Veilstone City…!"

Conway stepped out with his head bowed down, covered with the hood. His posture straightened as two flashing glasses lens contrasted from the darkness concealing the rest of Conway's face. The audience gasped and otherwise seemed to be startled at the sight, but Conway shook his hood off, caught his Capsule-covered Pokéball that was concealed within the large hood, and threw it out to the stage.

"Castform, come on down…!" he announced, and in a flurry of blue and purple bubbles from the Foamy Seals attached to the Capsule, Castform came spinning out of its ball, cheering happily as it was finally able to perform in its first Contest.

"Now, Castform, let us act quickly!" Conway advised, adjusting his glasses. "Perform Rain Dance…!"

Castform swirled around again in a circle, swaying and making the circle progressively wider as it conjured up a white, foggy ball of energy. Upon completion, the cloud swiftly raised into the air and spontaneously brought about a shower to the entire stage, surprising everyone.

"It seems Castform wants to rain on our parade!" Marian cried out, mildly confused. "Surely the Coordinator knows where he's going with this…!"

Conway only smirked and looked back to Castform, who was spiraling down back to the stage in its Rain Form. "You give me far too little credit, Marian. Castform, let's use Weather Ball next! Make it big and aim it high!"

Needing only a short amount of time to concentrate, a large ball of energy appeared over Castform's head. Due to Castform being transformed into a Water-type Pokémon since it was now raining, Weather Ball consequently became a Water-type move, and therefore resembled a giant ball of water, which made the audience gape at how such a small Pokémon could create masses of energy several times its size.

"Now… up it goes!" Conway signaled when he decided the Weather Ball was big enough, and Castform sent it flying into the air, where the eyes of the audience followed along. Weather Ball was kept in perfect form the entire time despite being made of water.

When he decided it was close enough to the cloud that was making the rain, Conway smirked and gave out his next order. "Castform, use Avalanche! Utilize the raincloud!"

Castform nodded and concentrated its energy as it glowed. From higher above, giant balls of snow formed above the raincloud and fell through it. Many of them poured into the Water-typed Weather Ball.

But due to the power of Avalanche, the raincloud was naturally transformed into a cloud creating snow, and the temperature of Weather ball quickly dipped to below-freezing, making it now a giant ball of ice rather than a ball of water. With rain now becoming snow, Castform changed into its Snow-cloud form.

The elements of nature and so many things happening at once wowed the audience for sure. Marian was glad to see that the male Coordinator had a plan all along. "Winter seems to have come early this year thanks to Castform!" she said. "What was once water is now ice and snow! And look at Castform: it looks completely different from before!"

Those who were too occupied with what was happening with Weather Ball finally noticed Castform's change in appearance and applauded loudly for the result. However, Conway wagged his finger.

"People, people! I'm just not done yet!" He insisted. "The finale has yet to come! So let's bring it to them, Castform: a full-powered Ember flurry at both our icy Weather Ball and the cloud making the snow! Let's do it!"

Though in Snow-cloud form, Castform was still able to use Ember perfectly well as it blew a barrage of fireballs directly at Weather Ball and the cloud. The fire shot through the clouds, quickly turning the snow back into rain (with various parts evaporating) while the fire against the solid-ice Weather Ball eventually made it explode into thousands of ice crystals. The mixture of the natural sunlight over the open-domed Contest Hall and water becoming an element in play again created a wonderful rainbow in addition to the ice crystals that slowly sprinkled onto the stage, the crowd, the judges, and Marian herself.

"The angling turned out to be just right after all!" Conway eagerly acknowledged. "Show your glory, dear Castform! Show them how beautiful you look in a color hue!"

Everyone was rendered speechless with the many spontaneous occurrences due to the unstable elements, but even after the raincloud dissipated and Castform returned to its natural self, it still looked adorable and almost magical as the audience watched it weave in and out between the rainbow that was created.

Once Conway decided enough was enough, he took a bow, and Castform humbly floated down to join him. Both were met with roaring applause.

Shortly after, it was the judges' turn to speak.

First, Contesta enthusiastically said, "The way Conway used the elements of weather to show us just how true beauty can be formed when mixing in opposing forces just goes to show you how beautiful our own world can be! I applaud him for pulling such a stunt, for the forces of weather cannot be so easily manipulated by a trainer or even a Pokémon!"

"I think the rainbow was remarkable!" Sukizo said, and though he sounded no less enthusiastic than he usually did, he did seem to be moved by the performance.

"Castform _did_ look astonishing in all of its forms," Nurse Joy noted. "With elements like this, many beginning Coordinators forget to showcase their Pokémon, but Conway knew by the end that Castform was the true star of the show, and they both pass with flying colors in my book!"

"That was Conway of Veilstone City, ladies and gentleman!" Marian announced. "Only one more contestant left before we move on to the battle rounds!"

After one final bow, Conway receded back into the curtains with Castform and looked to the waiting room, where he saw Paul getting up to leave. "Ah, good! I didn't have to wake you up! It's your turn now, buddy!"

"Stop calling me that," Paul grunted, and he wasn't about to admit to Conway that he had intently watched Conway's performance from start to finish. "I know I'm next. Finally, I can get this over with."

"Got the nerves? The jitters?" Conway asked teasingly. "You can't deny it; all first-timers do!"

"Except I'm _not_ a first-timer," Paul reminded him. "I'm just an unfortunate guy who lost a bet. But even so, if you want me to take this so seriously, then that's exactly what you're going to see from me."

Conway grinned at that assurance and lifted his hand up. "Nice attitude! One high-five for the road, then? I'll be cheering you on!"

It took a few moments of Paul staring blankly at Conway's palm that he realized he wasn't getting high-fived anytime soon, if ever.

"You realize you're just rubbing salt in the wound, don't you?" Paul asked him darkly as he made his way out of the waiting room and down the hallway. Conway, however, was quick to follow.

"No way; I really want you to perform well out there!" Conway pleaded. "You're such a talented battler that I know you can apply your strengths to this Contest and overcome the odds! Besides, don't remember that we've got those two girls with attitude to overcome in the next round! I really want you to move on with me!"

Just then, both boys crossed by Janelle and Mina on their way to the stage. Both smirked at their rivals, seemingly self-assured that they would come out the victors the end (or at least, Janelle would be _the_ victor).

"Don't worry; we wouldn't miss your failure of an act for the world," Janelle teased. "Better not disappoint us."

"That's right; I advise against boring Janelle if you know what's good for you," Mina said. "If you value your pride in the battle rounds, but that's assuming you two move on to that round in the first place."

Janelle flashed an evil grin and laughed out loud. "As if either even will! Come on, Mina. I'm hungry, but I don't want to miss this." She handed her more humbled friend some money. "Get me a corndog so I can chow down and watch this guy fall flat on his feet at the same time."

Mina eagerly nodded to her friend and scampered off. Conway and Paul just turned their noses up and went about their way just before the lowered curtain.

"I'm sure you don't need me to tell you not to pay those girls any mind," Conway said.

"You sure don't," Paul affirmed coldly. "I know they're both even bigger losers than you are. Don't worry about me; I'll be fine. The sooner we get this over with, the better."

Conway gave Paul's shoulder a friendly, encouraging pat as he made his way back to the waiting room. "I'll be watching. Best of luck out there…!"

Paul sighed after Conway finally left, taking out his Pokéball, which he also conceded to putting a Capsule and a couple of Seals on it. He briefly looked to it before pulling out his last-ditch effort in an attempt to hide his identity: a tight fabric that was tucked underneath his outfit until now that served to cover up the bottom half of his face. Knowing he would be called out by name scorned him to no end, but there was nothing he could do about it now: the curtain began to rise one final time.

* * *

"Now, let's hear it for our last Coordinator in this competition!" Marian exclaimed, which made Paul flinch initially. "From Veilstone City, everybody welcome Paul…!"

A generic cheer was heard from the audience, as no one who devoted themselves to Contests had as much of a clear idea on who Paul really was as much as traditional trainers. Something about him stuck out to many people, however.

Paul couldn't care less of the audience's reaction, however. He tossed his Pokéball, with his Contest Call being a muffled, "Weavile, get to first position…!"

With large poofs of smoke coming from the seals, Weavile came out at lightning-fast speed and back-flipped its way to the center of the stage.

Paul did not say anything to his Pokémon for the first move; rather, he posed and held his index and middle fingers out from both hands, crossing them together. Weavile seemed to understand this movement and immediately jumped up and spun in a circle while using Ice Beam.

"Amazing!" Marian cried out. "It seems that Weavile has learned a specific sort of sign language from its trainer!"

Indeed, this was another tactic Paul had planned to aid his anonymity: to use his voice as little as possible. There seemed to be no rule against that, though he wouldn't be able to keep that up in the battle rounds, so he simply enjoyed his silence for as long as he could.

Meanwhile, Weavile's spinning was creating a giant bowl made of ice on the stage. After finishing, Weavile skated along the ice and did a spin to signify that the first stage was complete. Paul's next sign involved him crossing both hands together before throwing them up high.

This signaled Weavile to use Surf. Summoning massive amounts of water to partially fill the bowl, Weavile proceeded to continue a sort of skating-surfing routine where the high tides of the Surf move were instantly frozen as Weavile rode the waves effortlessly. Those in the audience who feared getting soaked were soon saved as Weavile froze the waves before they could hit anyone.

"What precision!" Marian complimented. "Weavile's giving everyone a very close look at just how efficient its speed and skill is!"

The simplistic ice bowl was practically made into an ice monument as the giant frozen tidal waves gave off a very impressive and appealing look, made even better as Weavile continued to skate across its frozen terrain and emphasize its speed, precision, and ability to perform complex physical stunts; Weavile never failed to read the signals Paul silently gave him.

Finally, he brought both hands down forcefully, signifying that it was time to end it. After charging up some power, the Sharp Claw Pokémon utterly destroyed its beautiful icy masterpiece with a flurry of Brick Break attacks which ultimately turned the gigantic sculpture into diamond dust.

Both Weavile and Paul paused like ninjas of the dark arts to complete their performance. For a first-timer, just like Conway, Paul's performance was well-received by the audience.

"With a Weavile, a good Appeal should consist of moves that show off this Pokémon's natural abilities, for they are feats not many others can live up to," Contesta remarked. "Never before have I seen a Weavile that is not only so fast, flawless, and precise with its movements, but also creative! The unique ice rink was well-done, and even its destruction was beautiful!"

Sukizo was still admiring the lingering diamond dust. "Glittery… and remarkable!"

"Weavile's experience was quite apparent in this performance," said Nurse Joy. "Clearly these two have been partners for a long time, especially since Weavile didn't even need vocal commands to pull off such an astounding Appeal! It was so dark and intense, but calming and beautiful at the same time! This is a great way to end our first round!"

"And Nurse Joy is right; the Appeal round of the Plumeria Contest is now over!" Marian officiated. "And what a rush that was! Everyone, take a breather and get a snack; please be patient while our judges tally the results and we'll get back to you as soon as we can to reveal the eight Coordinators who will be moving on to the next round!"

As the excitement died down, Paul retreated back into the curtains and was immediately met with an ecstatic Conway.

"You were _amazing_…!" He exclaimed. "You far beyond exceeded my expectations!"

"That's because I want this Contest torture to end with this one," Paul replied snidely. "You said I had to put effort into it, and I'm doing so. Are you happy now?"

"Utterly thrilled!" Conway replied. "But that doesn't mean you get to throw the game when it comes time to battle! Remember, your Pokémon has to look cool while battling, as well!"

Paul sighed and shook his head. "That's assuming either of us make it beyond this round. Don't get your hopes up. Like it or not, we're inexperienced. But if we do make it, rest assured I'll be ready to humiliate those girls."

"That's the spirit!" Conway said with a grin. "Oh, if only it didn't feel like an eternity waiting for those results…"

* * *

Far, far away from Plumeria Town, a bored young man with hair the color of the sea continued his fruitless research on a task assigned by his boss: the location of the Spear Pillar. As a Commander of Team Galactic, Saturn was one of a few tasked with this mission. However, the Iron Island incident made things unexpectedly difficult for them. They at least pinpointed Mt. Coronet as the general location, but only a little less than half of the mountain had been scanned before the mission that fellow Commander Mars was in charge of fell through due to outside interference.

Much as he aimed to please Cyrus, his leader, Saturn could feel himself almost falling asleep at the monitors. One thing he did know is that the legendary pixies of the three lakes of Sinnoh also had a connection with their ultimate goal, but said role was unclear as of this time. With a greater understanding, Saturn wondered if that would aid their search for the Spear Pillar if the three were to be captured and obtained.

However, literature on the pixies were few and far in between. He had considered using his family, all composed of stereotypical bookworms, for assistance, but it often pained him to interact with them.

Upon glancing at his cellular phone (which was his personal phone), Saturn realized he had missed a call at one point and had voicemail. For lack of anything better to do, Saturn decided to call his voicemail number so at least his cell phone would stop blinking its light to inform him of the unread message.

"_Received yesterday at 11:28 PM," _said the automated voice before the actual message began.

"Sloan! It feels like it's been forever…!"

Saturn's eyes snapped wide open as the voice was immediately familiar to him; no one else pestered him more than his youngest cousin. He looked around briefly to be sure no other operatives were in the area before he let the call proceed. Ever since he joined Team Galactic, Saturn made it a point that he would only go by his given codename, as designated by Cyrus himself, and make sure no one else within Galactic Headquarters knew him by his given name. Fortunately for Saturn, he was alone this time.

"Sorry to call so late… guess you're in bed already, heh… I just wanted to let you know that I'm gonna be on TV again! Tomorrow, in fact! It's actually gonna be a Contest this time, and I plan to _win_ it, of course! I'd be super-stoked if you watched it!"

Saturn frowned. "He never stops to think that perhaps I have better things to do than watch my detestable relatives humiliate themselves in this pointless world."

"Guess I'll understand if you're busy, but I know you'd at least care! That's why you're the best! It's the Plumeria Town Contest, just so you know. I'm gonna be around that area for the next few days, so if you wanna call me back, just call the Plumeria Town Pokémon Center and I'm sure they'll fetch me over! Because I wanted to tell you that Canalave's library really got me some sweet deals on some super-rare books this time! It's a long story, but this Uxie book is _fascinating!_"

Among the sentimental drivel, Saturn's eyes snapped open at the mention of Uxie; one of the three lake pixies of Sinnoh.

"Pretty sure it's the only copy in Sinnoh, anyway… but you know it's been a while since I lent those video games of mine to you, right? You've beaten them by now, haven't you? I'd love to have them back whenever possible, so I'm willing to do a trade with you since I finished this book already! I think you'd really like it! Uxie's the pixie of Knowledge, and I know we both relate to that! Anyway, I'm sure the time limit's gonna cut me off soon, so I'll just wish you a good night and I Love You, Sloan! Please remember to watch me in the Contest tomorrow! Until then…!"

The message ended. But unlike with the majority of the calls he received from his cousin, Saturn chose to save this one for future reference. A dark smile crossed his face as he turned towards a television that was currently on some generic weather channel.

"It's been a while since you've proven yourself to be useful, dear cousin of mine," Saturn said to himself in a devious tone. He flipped through the channels. "So you'll be at Plumeria Town, you say… I think I will watch your little Contest. It'll give me a good idea of when it will be best to give you a… suitable response."

Just then, he found the right channel, as Marian's bright and sugary-sweet face popped up on the screen.

"Sorry to keep you waiting, everyone!" She apologized with enthusiasm. "But the judges have made their decision! Everyone look to the scoreboard to see the lucky eight Coordinators who will be moving on to the next round…!"

Pictures of each participating Coordinator were shown one-by-one in an agonizing fashion for those who were impatient. Saturn's bored look transformed into a smile when the fourth image that appeared on the screen just so happened to be the young man who was related to him.

"Conway," he said in a mockingly endearing tone. "It seems I was not too late to catch you after all. This is a good a time as any to judge your _other_ areas of expertise as well. Best of luck, little cousin."

Saturn's expressions darkened further as he focused on Conway's image on the screen.

* * *

**( TBC ) **


	10. Mars Attacks!

**( Notes:**

**Well, hasn't it been a nice... two and a half months since the last update? Well, hopefully I made the wait worth it. This chapter is roughly as long as Chapter 8, and this is the major shake-up chapter I've been harping on about for ages. It even depressed me a little bit; I think that's why it took so long for me to write it! Next time will feature an adaption of an actual episode, so hopefully that will be fun (and easier) to write!**

**Uh, so you know... there is a slightly mature scene around the last fourth of the chapter. I tried walking around it as best I could, but it's still quite heavily implied. No, it's not what you think it is (if you haven't already read the chapter before reading this or... haven't read my Livejournal or something). It's relatively pretty tame, but I'm not sure if it warrants an up in the overall rating in the fic. I highly doubt I'll ever come across that sort of scene again; this was just extra-evil/extra-drama that's been in the plans since the early summer. Maybe you guys can give me some input about the rating in your reviews? **

**Either way, this is the end of an era as far as the storyline goes. I have a sinking feeling it's going to be quite a different kind of story when Chapter 11 is finished, but hopefully the quality will still be retained! But no one has been written out, so in spite of what happens, don't think anyone's leaving the story for good... until I like, say that's the case. This isn't the case. Definitely not. Since I doubt I'll have Chapter 11 finished in two weeks (though stranger things have happened), happy early anniversary for this fic...? It'll have been one year since I posted the first chapter on November 2nd. I honestly don't think I've ever pulled off ten whole chapters in just one year.**

**But, well, I won't keep you. This mama is long, so bring a full dinner before you read! Enjoy~!)**

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* * *

  
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For once, it seemed that most of Sinnoh was blessed with good weather. Rays of the sun shined down on a very determined breeder in Veilstone City as he trained alongside his Ampharos and Infernape. Marowak and Lucario sparred utilizing only their Bone Rush moves while Bibarel and Swalot practiced their speed by trying to catch Staraptor.

Specifically, Reggie decided to take a page out of Maylene's book and attempt to become one with his Pokémon whilst training. With no aura involved, Reggie found it was harder than it looked to perfectly sync up with his Pokémon as they repetitively thrust their arms forward one at a time. Maylene had offered to help, but was turned down, as Reggie was determined to not be overly dependent on anyone; not even Maylene. With no challengers present, she decided to take up Reggie's usual duties at home while Reggie himself trained with her Pokémon in the backyard.

"He sure makes it look easy," Maylene noted with a sigh as she finished up serving lunch to all of the young Pokémon residents. "I can see why he felt bad about leaving me to fend for myself out here." She looked to her Machoke, who was not training outside with Reggie and the others, but rather cleaning up the kitchen after its partner had finished up arranging the meals.

"Thank you again, Machoke," she said, certainly grateful for even a little bit of help. Machoke simply smiled and gave her a thumbs-up. "Reggie did say he and the others would eat when they're ready… I guess they don't want to break up their momentum now that they finally got synced together." She giggled as she went inside the house. "Until then, it shouldn't hurt to take a break ourselves."

The first thing that came to mind as far as resting was concerned was to watch TV in the living room. Normally, an active girl like Maylene had more interesting ways of passing the time, but training inside the house was naturally a bad idea, and Reggie was quite specific about wanting to go about his training independently, as well as uninterrupted. The young Gym Leader was more than willing to go above and beyond for Reggie's sake, so she opted for a surefire way of occupying herself that would be relatively quiet and out of the way.

As Maylene turned the television on and flipped through the channels until she could find something that interested her, she instantly paused the moment she inadvertently flipped to a channel broadcasting what seemed to be a Contest. Maylene thought of her young friend from Twinleaf Town, Dawn; a beginning Coordinator who helped her immensely when she had her struggles during her early days as a Gym Leader months ago. She was sure to watch the Wallace Cup broadcast back when it aired live, where it featured Dawn's well-overdue victory. It made her happy to know she was able to help out Dawn just as much as Dawn helped her when it came to regaining their confidence. Ever since then, whenever she was available, Maylene tried to keep up with the Contests to monitor Dawn's progress.

However, she found another reason to keep up with this particular Contest. It seemed that she had missed the entire segment featuring appeals, as she tuned in just in time to see the announcement of the eight Coordinators who would be moving on to the battle rounds. Hoping to see Dawn's portrait on the screen within those eight spots, Maylene gasped as she saw two familiar faces being announced to move on to the next round. One particular face she never _once_ imagined would be on the screen. Maylene dashed out of the house immediately as the details sunk in.

"Reggie!!" she shouted at the top of her lungs from the house's backyard to where Reggie was training with the others. The loudness and tone of urgency in her voice was enough to completely throw off Reggie's momentum. "Reggie, get inside quick!!"

She had shocked him well enough that he practically fell to his knees as he turned over to acknowledge her. He lowly grumbled in aggravation, but tried his best not to look angry at his friend, even if he had specifically told her not to disturb his training today.

"I hope this is important," Reggie called back, sounding uncertain. "What happened? What went wrong?"

"No time!!" Maylene insisted. "Hurry up and follow me inside! Come on!"

Maylene had already rushed back into the house before Reggie could ask her why. His Pokémon shrugged when their trainer looked up at them questioningly. Seeing no other choice, Reggie decided to humor the Gym Leader and simply pray there was a good reason for her completely throwing off his training. He picked himself up and dashed back into the house.

"Maylene, what is it?!" Reggie yelled out as he made his way indoors. Having no idea where she went, Reggie logically made his way towards the living room, as he heard noise in there.

Before he made it to the room, he could hear Maylene shout "Your brother's in a Contest on TV!" in a single breath.

A second later, Maylene gasped as Reggie suddenly appeared right next to her on the couch. "Record it," was all he said.

Maylene looked up at Reggie questioningly. "I beg your pardon…?"

"Record it!!" he repeated in a much louder voice. "Red button on the remote control!"

"Oh! Right!" Maylene hurried and did so; the red button stood out amongst all of the black ones, so it didn't take her long at all to find it.

Of course, she knew why Reggie wanted this: for evidence. Thankfully, the program still had pictures of all eight Coordinators moving on to the next round, but has since progressed to the tournament-style chart to determine the match-ups. Conway was easy to pick out from the bunch. The non-Coordinator, Paul, was quickly recognized by the elder brother, though he had to cover his mouth to suppress the laughter when he realized both the ridiculousness of the situation itself and the ridiculousness of Paul's appearance.

"He really thought that would fool me?" Reggie wondered out loud with a snicker. "Paul knows me better than that."

Maylene was amused herself, but was surprised at how giddy Reggie was upon seeing this. "Uh, sorry I interrupted your training, Reggie," she apologized. "I just thought you'd want to…"

"Are you kidding?" Reggie said to her, though his eyes never left the screen. "Training can wait. It isn't every day I see my little brother on TV… especially in an event he wouldn't be caught dead at even if he was just in the crowd."

"If that's the case, why do you think he entered?" Maylene asked.

Reggie just grinned and shook his head. "There's no way he did it of his own free will. Looks like Conway's in this thing, too. I'm certain he had something to do with this. We're definitely giving those two a call after this is over. Paul obviously wanted this to be covered up or else we probably would have been notified. Good catch, Maylene."

The young Gym Leader looked quite proud of herself upon receiving the compliment. "It was a one-in-a-million chance occurrence. Won't Paul be _livid_ when he finds out we were watching him in a Contest!"

* * *

The two particular Contest participants were watching the big screen live at the time when it was announced officially who would be moving on to the battle rounds. Conway cheered with glee upon seeing his visage among the eight who would continue, while Paul only sighed upon seeing his picture pop up soon after. Conway's enthusiasm was more than enough for both of them, at least.

"We both moved on!" Conway practically squealed in excitement. "Can you believe it?! Our very first Contest and we're both moving on to the quarterfinals! Come on, Paul! You've got to be enjoying this at least a little bit!"

"Not even remotely," Paul assured him. "Besides, your excitement's going to die down soon enough: look who's moving on with us."

Indeed, Conway's smile slowly faded as he realized that Janelle and Mina – the two girls who bullied the boys yesterday at the bakery – also moved on to the battle rounds as planned. "Oh… I see what you mean," he glumly admitted. "Bummer."

"Looks like they both were blessed with beginner's luck, Janelle," a nasally female voice muttered right behind Paul and Conway. They both simultaneously turned around to see the rivals they never wanted looking up at the screen and making note of the results. "More fun for us, right?"

"I'll look like a true veteran when we smash them both to bits," Janelle mused, fully confident. "And then it'll be Ribbon #4 for me."

Mina nodded adamantly. "After careful analysis of the appeals made by the others who have moved on, including _these two_," she said, looking directly at the boys in front of her. "By statistical means, you're guaranteed a win from your position in the A block."

"It's even better with your position in the D block," Janelle pointed out. "You'll be able to take out everyone on the other side."

"I would be honored to be slaughtered by you in the finals, Janelle," Mina assured dreamily. Said dreams were cut short when Paul inserted himself into the conversation.

"You know, I would be immensely grateful if both of you shut your useless pieholes," he requested as politely as he could. "If you want an opportunity to stroke your ego in the presence of some men with no prior experience, how about you tell me where to go from here?"

Janelle frowned at being insulted, but smiled approvingly at Paul's offer. "Certainly. Mina, explain it to him."

Mina looked up and put her notes away, nodding to her superior before looking to the boys. "Not a problem. As you can already see, Janelle is in the A block while I am in the D block. Conway, you're in the C block while Paul is in the B block. There are two separate waiting rooms aside from the one we were just in on opposite sides of the building. The A and C blocks take the waiting room north of us while B and D occupy the one on the south end."

"Looks like we're getting split up, Paul," Conway realized. "Well, we're all competitors from here on out, anyway… just hang on and we'll reunite in the finals in no time."

Paul scoffed. "You say that as if I'll miss your company."

"Well, just remember you're still required to put effort into the competition," Conway reminded him cheerfully. "If all of us win our respective matches coming up soon, then it'll be all four of us in the semi-finals. We're in it to take these two down, remember? If we can overcome them, it'll be you versus me in the final match and either one of us could win a ribbon!"

"Keep dreaming," Janelle taunted, maintaining a dominant antagonistic air about herself. "Come on, sci-fi nerd; you're coming with me." With no desire to wait around any longer, she yanked Conway along by the hood of his out fit and started dragging him. "You know what to do, Mina."

As Mina nodded in understanding to Janelle, Conway helplessly waved a temporary farewell to his companion as he was dragged backwards to his assigned waiting room. "Best of luck, Paul!" he wished in an awkward tone as he tried to regain some control in his movement. "May the Force be with you…!"

Paul rolled his eyes, humoring his geeky travelling companion by giving a half-hearted wave back until both he and Janelle were out of sight. He had temporarily forgotten the presence of Mina until she spoke up.

"Ah, Paul?" Her voice was softer and lacking a bit of confidence that was just present the last time she opened her mouth. "Whenever you're ready, I'll escort you to our waiting room."

"Oh… right," Paul responded, somewhat taken aback by the notable change in Mina's tone after she parted with Janelle. "Lead the way, then."

Mina gave him a brief bow and started off in the opposite direction. "Please follow me."

There was an awkward period of silence as Paul and Mina made their way to the waiting room. It was welcome to Paul, yet strange at the same time. Ever since he partnered up with Conway almost three weeks ago in Canalave City, Paul felt as if his bespectacled acquaintance had talked his ear off nearly the whole time. He couldn't honestly say all of it was bad, but adamantly believed most of it was unbearable nonetheless. Time and time again, just as Paul thought he was finally resuming his journey on his own and on his way to regaining his peacefully quiet travels, Conway found some sort of excuse to hang on to him. The faux Coordinator never would have dreamed that the Tag Battle Tournament in Hearthome City could haunt him quite like this.

Still, after almost a month of having Conway in his life every single day, Paul was slowly beginning to get used to his presence (though he would sooner die than admit it). In certain circumstances, Conway's words of wisdom held _some_ weight… and that was something Paul couldn't deny no matter how much he wanted to. After all, he wouldn't be in this mess in the first place if Conway hadn't proved him wrong. And surprisingly, "this mess" was superior to the alternative, which was being a frozen corpse covered in snow at the bottom of a lonely gorge in the heart of Route 216. As it played over again in Paul's head – what he could remember of it, anyway – he could feel his heart sinking for some odd reason.

Perhaps he didn't _want _to think of it in such a way, but Paul thought back on his actions as borderline-insanity on _his_ part. At one point, he was so eager to be ripped away from Conway that he was willing to risk his own life for the chance. Part of Paul still tried to feel that it was perfectly understandable, but now a significantly-growing side of his psyche began to regret the past actions; and not just because it had put Paul an entire week and a half behind schedule, either.

By now, it was becoming difficult for Paul to comprehend how he would feel if he and Conway went their separate roads at this point. He wondered if, perhaps, Conway would stop following him after the Contest if he happened to win.

Close as Conway wanted to be to Paul, the latter knew he was eternally second place to the blue-haired girl who travelled with Ash Ketchum in Conway's eyes. If Conway were to get the idea that he could be a successful Coordinator after all, Paul speculated that it was entirely possible for the two to part ways after this. This hypothesis on future events seemed especially real when Paul remembered he had told Conway that this would be the one and only Contest they would ever dare have anything to do with. Unless he ran into Ash and the others sometime soon, Conway would have no chance of ever encountering his beloved Dawn in a Contest.

It was then that a sense of determination felt present within Paul's body. He was beginning to feel that perhaps, if he were to be unfortunate enough to win the entire competition, it might not be as bad lugging around that ribbon as he initially thought. He would just keep it well-hidden and discard the rest of the evidence. But if Paul winning the Contest would secure Conway's place as his travelling mate… well, it was beyond _him_ why he suddenly regarded the possibility of winning as not being an absolutely disgusting result.

After the stunt that was pulled yesterday, Paul certainly wasn't content with the idea of Janelle winning the Contest. If all four of them made it to the second round of battling, then it would be up to him to put Janelle in her place. He certainly had his work cut out for him. Now it _did_ bother Paul that he wouldn't be able to talk to Conway until the Contest was over. He had so much time to ask the burning question of whether or not Conway would stay on as his escort if he won this Contest, and Paul failed to take advantage of it.

Even just within the quarterfinals, Paul felt as if the whole tournament had become a round of sudden death.

"You're not as similar to Janelle as I once thought," Mina stated out of nowhere, which brought Paul back to reality. For once, he was thankful for having his thoughts interrupted.

"What made you think we were even _remotely_ similar?" Paul asked her incredulously, failing to see any common trait between himself and that fire-haired beast of a young lady… except, perhaps, for the fact that they both had a nerd following their every step.

Against her better judgment, Mina blushed and looked away. "It just… I'm sorry. I felt there was a parallel between the four of us. In spite of your youth, you are the one who calls the shots in your respective duo," she deduced. "You are strong-willed and unwavering in your position. That's what made me believe you parallel Janelle."

Paul shrugged, feeling apathetic about the minion's point of view. "Fair enough. But you're changing your mind, you said?"

"There is so much more to a person than such basic personality traits," Mina explained. "We are all our own person. Having one or two general traits in common doesn't mean you're similar people. Janelle is so much more… talkative than you are. I'm not used to it being so quiet for this long. It's as if you don't want to exist, so you remain quiet in hopes that everyone ignores you."

"Funny," Paul sarcastically grumbled. "I could say the same of you. You lost your fire quite quickly, but you're perfectly capable of being every bit as annoying as your friend when you're with her."

Mina nodded in agreement, oddly enough. "I can't deny that I feel more confident and competitive whenever she's present. I've been at her side for so long that it's become strange going even a relatively short period of time without her…"

Paul quietly swallowed in a breath as all the color drained away from his face. He was just now thinking about this subject in relation to himself and Conway; it was no doubt eerie that the strange girl beside him had very similar feelings about her own partner.

"She's my best friend," Mina continued, though this fact was very obvious to Paul. Oddly, he hadn't once wondered if Conway considered _him_ his best friend. And just then, Paul remembered Conway and his sister, Franny, confirming that Paul himself was the first sleepover guest in Conway's name to ever come to their home. He only now realized how truly significant he'd become in Conway's life in a short amount of time. It was beginning to bother Paul deeply.

"When I lacked a goal of my own, she gave me one herself," Mina claimed. "That's why I don't mind managing her instead of focusing on myself. I'm doing it because it makes her happy."

"Conway's into pleasing himself more than he is pleasing me," Paul remarked somewhat-sourly. "After all, I never wanted to be here. I'm not a Coordinator. Either way, I have to admit I'm not that interested in your sob story. Psychological therapists exist for a reason, you know."

It seemed as if Mina was used to the harsh words, as she didn't even flinch at what Paul said to her. "Yes, of course," she lowly replied, picking up the pace. "We should hurry. The first round is about to begin."

Paul followed, but it was all but evident that his conflicting feelings on certain subjects were beginning to take a toll on his weary mind. He couldn't remember the last time he felt so anxious over something he perceived as meaningless.

* * *

"Say cheese…"

"Wh-what…? Aah!!"

Saturn almost fell out of his desk chair as his visage was captured on the camera. The camera's owner was a chuckling, scheming female by the codename of Mars; a fellow cohort of Saturn's. Most of the time she was an ally, but within seconds, he had become Saturn's worst enemy.

"Tsk, tsk… slacking off on your shift," Mars taunted. "Is this your first day on the job? Cyrus won't appreciate such behavior from his… how did you word it again?"

"Preferred commander," Saturn replied dryly. "Honestly, Mars. Are you not working a shift yourself? Have you nothing better to do?"

Mars smirked and wagged her finger at her coworker. "Ever heard of a lunch break? I'm just earning a little bit of extra credit, if you know what I mean."

"So out of sheer boredom, you decided to blackmail me. I see," Saturn acknowledged, frowning. "Think what you will, but I am watching this program for a reason relevant to our cause."

"What? You're so full of it," she teased, not about to believe him. "Just admit it. I won and you lost. Your fate is now in my hands. I can convince Cyrus that you're worthless if I decide to share this with him in a matter of seconds."

Saturn grumbled as he turned around to face the television again. "As I said before, what I'm doing may normally constitute as breaking a rule. However, this is an exception. Whether or not you agree with me is irrelevant."

Mars frowned. Normally after this much teasing, Saturn would have broken down; he was surprisingly fragile compared to his peers. Being bullied by his two fellow female officers on a regular basis was the last thing Saturn expected when he first joined the organization. But now Mars could tell that Saturn wasn't bluffing, thus her curiosity was piqued.

"Fine, I'll bite," she conceded, rolling her eyes. "What are you watching and why?"

Saturn smirked. The ball was in his court now. "If you agree to assist me, I will share my knowledge. Call Cyrus in if you must; I am certain he would compliment me on my impeccable work ethic, even if it is rather unorthodox."

As much of a nose Mars was, she greatly disliked not being in The Know. "If I assist you… what's in it for me?"

"We will discuss that after I explain the situation," Saturn assured. "Are you in? I feel you are unable to resist temptation when it is presented to you. That's always why I perceived you as the weakest amongst the Galactic Commanders," he said snidely.

There were a number of demands Mars had in mind, but she sighed and decided to hear out her fellow commander. "Fine… I'm in. This'd better be worth my time."

"Oh, it is," Saturn promised. "So I'll begin. It started with a phone call I missed last night. I noticed there was unread voicemail and decided to listen. It just so happened to be my cousin."

"The one you were talking about recruiting?" Mars wondered aloud. Saturn had at times mentioned bringing in his cousin into the organization in the past, and it wasn't a stretch… seeing as Saturn's parents were already longtime employees.

Saturn couldn't believe he almost forgot about his plans to initiate Franny as a Galactic Grunt. "Oh my, no. I never told you I had more than one cousin, did I? Thank you for reminding me about the other one… I will deal with her when the time is right. I have another cousin; a young teenager who is every bit as knowledgeable as his sister. The difference is that he travels and often collects rare and valuable books that he will let me 'borrow' because he holds me in high regard."

"So he's unaware of what a dork you are, then?" Mars interrupted. "I can already imagine his world crashing down when he realizes the truth."

Saturn paused for a minute, staring hard at Mars with indignation before continuing. "… As I said, he often gives me useful books whenever he finds them. Some have even been useful in relation to the missions we've had in the past. In his message from last night, he confirmed that he is in possession of an extremely rare _Uxie_ book that he found from the Canalave City library."

"Uxie book…" Mars repeated quietly, now looking serious. "Jupiter went nuts trying to find that book. I guess I should tell her to call off the raid she's planning for that place. She'd be very grateful to have that book."

"And if we give it to her, then we'll all get credit for Uxie's eventual capture," Saturn explained. "Thereby preventing Jupiter from hogging the limelight."

"Crafty," Mars remarked. "I like it. So when's the little urchin going to give you the book?"

Saturn smirked and gestured towards the television. "He is the reason why I am watching this Pokémon Contest. He urged me to watch it. I am keeping track of time by watching him on this live broadcast. After the Contest, I was thinking of confronting him in person and perhaps ask if _he _would like an internship as a member of our ranks. He despises his sister, so anything to one-up her would be ideal to him. That way, we get both the book and a new recruit. Cyrus would be most pleased."

Mars nodded in approval. "Now it makes sense. So where do I factor, hm?"

"I would actually like you to be the recruiter," Saturn requested. "Brilliant as his mind can be, he is still relatively young. I will cover for you if need be, but I will also keep constant surveillance on this Contest so I can signal to you when the time is right."

"You want _me_ to convince the brat to join Team Galactic…?" Mars wasn't following. "But… he's your cousin. I'm a complete stranger to him. Wouldn't he be more inclined to join if you recruited him instead?"

Saturn nodded, understanding where Mars was coming from. "Indeed… but such a thing can be remedied if you assure the boy that I sent you. He's actually quite gullible. One advantage you have that I do not is your gender, as a matter of fact."

"Because I'm a girl?" Then it hit her. "Oh wait… you mean…?"

"Now you're catching on," Saturn deviously murmured with a crooked smile. "My cousin has quite a weakness for attractive women. I'm certain you won't need to do much to convince him, if that's what you're concerned about."

Mars was beginning to dread this. By nature, she was quite a flirtatious tease for a Team Galactic member and wouldn't mind a mission involving acts of seduction under false pretenses. That's where she excelled, in her opinion. But a relative of Saturn… it seemed to hit too close to home. She also had a bad feeling that this young, likely-unstable and hormonal teenager would not be that good-looking. That factor alone could turn her preferred type of mission into a complete nightmare.

Sensing her hesitation, Saturn nodded to her. "You must be curious about his appearance."

"Yes, please show me," she said lowly. She walked closer towards the television screen to get a good look at who she would have to seduce this time. "The uglier he is, the higher my demand for this bargain will be, Saturn."

"I perfectly understand," Saturn said sympathetically. "Oh, convenience. They're beginning the next match. It looks like my cousin is up."

Both Galactic Commanders turned their attention to the screen, where Marian quickly appeared to do her duty as the host.

"Now that we're past the B block battle, let's determine who will be joining Janelle and Paul in the semifinals!" Marian announced. "To my right, hailing from Emeragrove Town… Riven!"

Noticing a lack of reaction from Saturn, Mars blinked and turned to him. "You… said your cousin was in this, right?"

"Give it time, Mars," Saturn stiffly requested, never taking his eyes off the screen. "I will let you know when he comes in sight."

Just as Saturn said that, Marian introduced the second competitor.

"And to my left, from Veilstone City… it's Conway!"

Saturn nodded. "Right there, glasses and all. That is my cousin."

Mars was beginning to wish she never snooped in on Saturn's business today. "_He's_ the guy I have to hit on so he'll give up both the book and himself?"

"Relax, Mars," Saturn scoffed. "Surely you've had uglier creatures to contend with in the past. I assure you that Conway will be putty in your hands if you strike quickly and significantly. It will be relatively painless."

"You're telling me it's more like ripping off a band-aid really quickly rather than trying to pop a zit?" Mars asked him, still not sounding up for this.

Saturn pondered that analogy for a moment before responding. "Yes. I suppose one could see it like that. And that's a good thing, isn't it?"

"Alright, I saw the guy," Mars muttered. "Now I'm going to make my demand as payment for having to smooch your dorky little cousin."

Quickly, Saturn slipped Mars a small picture of Conway. "Keep that for reference," he suggested. "Now we may finalize the bargain."

"Let's keep it short and sweet, then," Mars murmured. "I have a feeling you want me out of here before the broadcast is over."

Saturn smirked and nodded. It was a bonus to get to put her under pressure like this. "This Contest is taking place in Plumeria Town… a bit of a lengthy flight from our secret base. Yes, it would be good for you to leave as soon as possible. I will cover for you and fulfill your demands in the meantime. I must ask that you land a good distance beyond the limits of town so as not to attract unwanted attention."

"Don't talk to me like I'm some rookie," Mars complained. "I know by heart how to handle these operations. Are you done yet?"

After a slight pause, Saturn nodded again. "The final thing I request is to keep your priorities straight: should something go awry, at the very least, make sure you secure the book. My cousin is expendable, but that book is not. That does not excuse laziness; this is only for the direst of situations."

"Got it," Mars affirmed. "Alright, then. Here are my demands."

She slammed down a written list of what seemed to be quite a tall order. Saturn agreed to oblige to her wishes, no matter how ridiculous they were, but he gulped when he started to read the list.

"Pardon me," he said nervously. "Am I not reading your handwriting correctly? That number…"

"Oh, you're reading it right," Mars assured him, patting him on the head as if he were some sort of house pet. "Five-hundred."

Saturn dropped the list onto the desk as he acknowledged the demand. "Five-hundred pizzas…"

"Hassle me and I'll make it five-_thousand_," she threatened. "You know how long it's been since I've gotten to enjoy a good pizza. The energy shakes in the break room are so _rancid_," she complained, cringing. "Don't ask me how you'll manage to smuggle in that much pizza into headquarters without getting the boss' attention. The point is you get it done if you want me to make a man out of your boy-cousin."

"You want to have a secret underground pizza party, I see," Saturn acknowledged. "And you have the gall to scold _me_ for breaking the rules…"

"Ah-ah-ah," Mars taunted, tapping the list with her finger. "Don't make me make an addition to that order."

Briefly looking back at the screen, Saturn sighed. He hated being in a vice grip like this, but didn't want Mars to increase her order tenfold and topple over the already immensely-lopsided deal. Five-hundred pizzas all for a single book. The lengths Saturn went to please his boss knew no limit.

"We have a deal," Saturn conceded with a tone of disgust in his voice. "I will keep you up-to-date on the target's status for as long as I can. Don't make me regret this, Mars."

Mars grinned, now truly feeling she had a fulfilling short-term goal to work for. "You just make sure those pizzas are hot and ready when I come back."

As Mars sauntered out of Saturn's working quarters, the remaining commander sighed and turned his attention back to the television, where it was revealed that Conway had just earned himself a spot in semifinals.

"Soon, little cousin," he whispered to himself, glaring at his relative on the screen. "Soon you will finally make all of those years of aggravating torture I spent pretending to love you worth it."

* * *

Back in Plumeria Town, the quarterfinals had come and gone. Janelle, Paul, Conway, and Mina all progressed onward to the semifinals. The winners from the Janelle vs. Paul and Conway vs. Mina matches would move on and battle to determine who earned their right to claim the Plumeria Ribbon. By now, all four remaining contestants had their own desire to win, whether it was painfully obvious in some cases or a quiet, coveted secret in others.

"The time has come! The semifinals of the Plumeria Town Contest are ready to begin!" Marian confirmed, ready to introduce the challengers. "So let's get right into it!"

"It's time," Mina told Paul, who immediately sat up from his seat in the waiting room.

He intended to make it out of the room as quickly as possible, but stopped when he sensed Mina following him, strangely enough. "What's your deal?" he asked in a rather rude manner, though was taken off-guard more than anything else.

"I'm aware it's all too obvious who I want to win in this match," Mina admitted. "But you aren't as bad as you make yourself out to be, and for the sake of sportsmanship, I would like to wish you good luck with your battle."

She extended her arm towards him for a handshake. Paul simply stared at the expecting hand and at the young girl blankly before simply nodding to her and going on about his way. Deep down, he hoped his unappreciative gestures would make Mina change her mind about what she just said.

Even he knew no one moment of mild civility to his peers could change the truth. That's what he told himself, anyway.

"From Veilstone City, here comes Paul, everyone!" Marian shouted. On cue, Paul walked out to the arena for the second time today. "And from Jubilife City, we have Janelle!"

With thunderous applause came the greater of two evils. Paul looked to her with apprehension. There was nothing but full confidence on Janelle's end.

"Only one of these two Coordinators will be moving on to the final round!" Marian reminded the crowd. "Who will it be? In five minutes or less, we'll find out! Counting down from three, two, one… let the battle begin!"

Both trainers immediately let out their Pokémon.

"Step up, Crawdaunt!" Janelle called out, releasing her Pokéball. In a flurry of lightning bolts and bubbles, the Rogue Pokémon was sent out to the field.

"Honchkrow, stand by for battle!" Paul returned in kind, unleashing the other Dark-typed Pokémon in his team. It emerged from a plume of dark smoke that came out from the Seals placed on the Ball Capsule.

Having seen how Janelle battled with Crawdaunt before in the previous round, Paul was quick to take the initiative. "Honchkrow! Sky Attack, now!"

The attack would take some time to charge up. This gave Janelle ample time to respond.

"I knew he had no idea what he was doing," Janelle muttered, smirking. "Who would let an opening like that go by unnoticed?" After quickly going over her options, she decided on a move that she thought would certainly put a dent in Paul's points. "Let's stop him before he gets started!" she shouted to her Pokémon. "Crabhammer!"

Crawdaunt's pincers glowed with a bright white light as it approached Honchkrow and prepared for contact. Both Paul and Janelle smirked, apparently having an ulterior motive behind the moves they chose to start out with. As Honchkrow gathered its own glowing energy as Sky Attack progressed towards the peak point of its power, the two would make contact within seconds.

"Uppercut!" Janelle ordered, sending Crawdaunt to clobber Honchkrow in an upwards strike.

A split second later, Paul made his last decision before contact. "Dive under Crawdaunt…!"

Janelle had apparently counted on the typical Flying-type Pokémon to fly up and away from the attack she was about to deliver. Her plan covered all directions but the one Paul ultimately chose: from below. With Sky Attack at its peak and Crawdaunt unable to jump high enough to get completely over Honchkrow, the Big Boss Pokémon knocked Crawdaunt out from under its feet and sent it toppling over front-first.

"It looks like Crawdaunt attacked from all but one direction, and that direction was more than enough for Honchkrow to completely knock its opponent for a loop!" Marian announced. "That botched move is going to hurt Janelle early on!" And it had; a small chunk of Janelle's points were whittled down to 89% while Paul retained his points perfectly.

"Lady Luck seems to like smiling down on the beginners quite a bit today," Janelle noted, obviously displeased with how her opening turned out.

To that, Paul only shook his head and managed a small smile. "Unfortunately for you, I don't believe in luck. I just happen to catch on quickly." Noticing Janelle was too upset with the incident to realize Honchkrow was still behind her Crawdaunt, Paul decided to act quickly.

"Honchkrow, let's go!" he called out. "Aerial Ace!"

His fellow darkly-colored teammate spun inward a bit, gracefully diving in to attack Crawdaunt from the back.

"Sucker," Janelle muttered. "Crawdaunt! Respond with Payback when Honchkrow makes contact!"

She had faked out her opponent by lulling him into a false sense of security. Paul had no means of improvising before his Honchkrow landed a clean hit on Crawdaunt; however, shortly after, Crawdaunt returned the attack with double the power. As a Dark-type move, it wasn't as devastating to Honchkrow as it would have been to a Pokémon with no resistance to the type. However, Crawdaunt made good use of its brief, fleeting moments of its advantage by grabbing Honchkrow with its pincers. With a body slam, Crawdaunt slammed the bird down.

"What a comeback!" Marian exclaimed. "Crawdaunt's turnabout was certainly well-planned! And how fantastic is it that a Pokémon of Crawdaunt's build can pull off classic wrestling techniques?! Paul must be reeling after that one!"

What Paul was _more_ aggravated about was the fact that Marian had practically abused the usage of his name throughout this competition. If anyone he knew happened upon the broadcast, it was all but a certainty that his cover would be blown. But he tried to regain his focus, ignoring the fact that his points took a hit from the last clash, setting him down to 85%. Janelle's points were unaffected despite being hit with a move.

"Let's get serious, Honchkrow!" Paul shouted, having decided what he would try next. "Use Haze on the field!"

After getting back to its feet and becoming airborne again, Honchkrow happily obliged by spewing a dark plume of smoke all over the field, obscuring everything (including Crawdaunt).

"Now this could be a risky move!" Marian acknowledged. "Honchkrow's making it difficult to see on the field! What could the Coordinator be planning, and will it pay off?!"

"What's he trying to do…?" Janelle wondered. Paul didn't utilize this move in his previous battle, meaning the red-hot young lady was utterly clueless as to what his motives were. "Crawdaunt, just stay put. Stay vigilant!" There was no way to get her Crawdaunt out of the obscuring smoke, leaving Paul with a free chance to strike.

"Honchkrow, assume the vulture attack pattern!" Paul called out. "Use Night Slash and make sure you rise above the haze!"

This was Paul's way of playing dirty. By rendering Janelle and Crawdaunt blind, the playing field completely belonged to Paul and Honchkrow. The Big Boss Pokémon's wings glowed in a brilliant, vivid purple color that was strong enough to remain visible within the dark haze. It dove gracefully into the haze, drive-by smacking Crawdaunt while consumed in the darkness, and finally coming back above the haze. Swiftly, it flew in circles nearby the dark fog, bringing wisps of it along. Honchkrow continued to circle around the battlefield, much like the typical vulture, and as a result, no one was able to see Crawdaunt until the haze dissipated. Crawdaunt was unable to see its opponent and Janelle was unable to see Crawdaunt. However, Honchkrow made use of the haze and formed spiral shapes, which everyone was perfectly able to see.

"It seems Honchkrow intends to pull the curtain on Crawdaunt early!" Marian noted. "Crawdaunt must be beside itself with the inability to stand out! But somehow, Paul knew how to make Honchkrow use this to his full advantage! Just look at Janelle's points fall!"

That prompted Janelle to look to the scoreboard and indeed looked horrified that her points were gradually lost as Paul kept up the routine. Just as her points made it to the halfway mark, so did the time limit.

"Alright, enough of this!" Janelle shouted. "You sadistic jerk… try getting out of this one! Crawdaunt, Avalanche! Get into position!"

Though it was immersed in a thick haze, Crawdaunt was still able to hear its trainer perfectly fine. Without restraint, it conjured up piles of snow, surrounding the whole field and dispersing most of the haze. What little that remained gave the falling snow an interesting affect, which turned Paul's own strategy against him. It cost him a good deal of his points, though he remained well ahead of Janelle in that department.

However, the Ice-type move hit Honchkrow rather hard. Completely defenseless in the air, it was soundly forced back to the ground halfway covered in snow. Oddly enough, Crawdaunt was nowhere to be seen.

"It seems both Coordinators favor to use their moves for stealth!" Marian announced after the snow had settled. "Where could Crawdaunt be?! The haze is no longer and play, and Paul paid the price for it!"

Paul glared down at the field, clearly uncomfortable with the situation. If it were a normal battle, he wouldn't have felt even remotely stressed out, but it was no ordinary battle. Only having one Contest battle to go by for experience, Paul was clearly feeling tense.

"Get up, Honchkrow!" he ordered. "Crawdaunt must be under the snow somewh-"

"Crawdaunt, Superpower!"

Not a second later, Crawdaunt burst out from under the snow and was much closer to the still-recovering Honchkrow than Paul had thought. There was no time to shout out an order, as Crawdaunt harshly rammed into the Big Boss Pokémon and sent it skidding along the field of snow. Just after that, Crawdaunt growled fiercely, flexing its claws and briefly glowing, as if to foreshadow an ominous ending forthcoming. Reflecting well off the bits of ice that shattered off both Pokémon after impact, Paul's points were hit hard once more, leaving him down to 40%. It was a very strong super-effective attack for Honchkrow to handle, evident when it had difficulty standing on two legs, much less being able to fly.

"How about that," Janelle mused. "I might just defeat him by technical knockout after all."

"Two super-effective attacks in a row are clearly making Honchkrow worse for wear!" Marian chimed in. "How will Paul respond to Janelle's-"

"Get airborne _now_, Honchkrow!" Paul shouted furiously. He had officially lost his patience. "We're running out of time!"

He was right about that, at least. A judgment would be made in less than a minute and Paul needed to act quickly if he were to succeed in defeating Janelle.

"There's no choice… this match will be determined within the next couple of moves," Paul acknowledged. "Honchkrow, this is it! Keep low to the ground and use Sky Attack! Listen for my signal!"

Honchkrow pulled itself together, readying itself for the final attack. It did as Paul instructed, keeping low to the ground while energy for the attack charged. By doing so, Honchkrow spread out the remaining snow on the field as it made a beeline toward Crawdaunt.

Janelle smirked at the last-ditch effort her opponent brought out. "I'm not falling for the same trick twice. Nice try. Crawdaunt, fight back with Superpower!"

Crawdaunt started to glow as well; fully ready to ram into Honchkrow and knock it out when the two would make contact.

"Twenty seconds left!" Marian cut in. "This move will determine who's going to the finals! It's anybody's game!"

Both trainers watched closely before their Pokémon collided. Just at the last moment, Paul smirked.

"Cancel Sky Attack!" he called out. "Veer left and strike back with Aerial Ace!"

That decision certainly threw Janelle for a loop. "Wait, what?!"

Massive energy was released as Sky Attack was nearing its peak just before Honchkrow canceled the move. In a split second, Honchkrow zoomed to Crawdaunt's left side just as it moved to ram into its opponent as Janelle planned. Having missed the target, said target spared no second to slam into Crawdaunt with Aerial Ace. With brightly-shining wings, Honchkrow sent Crawdaunt sprawling helplessly into the air.

Gracefully, Honchkrow landed at the center of the stage and posed valiantly, seeming to have acquired a taste in battling beautifully whilst Crawdaunt fell like a ton of bricks into the snow.

"Time's up!" Marian cried. Both competitors briefly froze in place before turning their attention to the announcer. "Oh, this is a close one," she said, looking up at the screen. "So who prevailed in the end…?"

Both Janelle and Paul looked up to see their progress on the screen, but their scores were so close that is was difficult to immediately tell. They didn't have time to truly see it for themselves before their question was already answered.

"It was Paul…! Paul and Honchkrow will advance to the finals!!" Marian revealed.

"Unbelievable," the cynical Paul muttered. "I train for this competition for not even a full day with no prior experience and I somehow land myself into the final round. What are the odds?"

Janelle was dumbfounded for a while, but even after snapping out of it, she could not form words. All she could express was her raw, unadulterated anger for losing a second consecutive time to someone she despised.

Just as Paul was about to make his way backstage, he noticed Janelle throwing a tantrum and likely making a spectacle of herself in doing so. After enjoying a couple of moments watching her squirm and whine, he decided to speak up and give out his final parting word to a girl he certainly had no desire to see again after this day.

"What did I tell you about the concept of beginner's luck?" Paul taunted, reminding her of the verbal exchange they had at the beginning of the battle. "It's total bull. What you actually experienced was something called beginner's _skill_. I suggest you look into that before you try to participate in any sort of competition again. It'll at least spare you from some of the embarrassment that you're surely getting today by being a sore loser."

Janelle glared at Paul as he fully turned around and walked away. Unfortunately for her, she couldn't think of anything witty or poignant to say; he had soundly defeated her fair and square and proved her wrong. She stormed off the opposite way, muttering unintelligible things under her breath. Paul smirked to himself just before he re-entered the waiting room.

"If nothing else, that ought to prevent her from trying to inflict first-degree burns on the people she wants as rivals," Paul said to himself, still somewhat enthralled by his victory. "Had she not done that to me, I wouldn't have felt the urgent need to defeat her. She very well may have cost herself the win due to acting like a spoiled brat. Oh well… the more you learn."

Upon returning to the waiting room, Paul first saw Mina gaping at the television monitor, still in shock of what she had seen. She snapped out of it when she noticed Paul had returned, seeming nervous.

"O-oh! Goodness… I certainly can't complain. You played the game well, Paul," Mina humbly said.

"It's a good thing you're more level-headed than your friend," Paul noted casually. "I think she wants to tear me limb from limb. By the way, I think it's your turn to get ready."

Mina smiled, though she looked nervous. "It's alright. I can see this Contest really was meant to showcase you boys… since Janelle lost, I don't really have a reason to-"

Paul decided not to let her finish that sentence and pushed her on ahead to the exit that would lead her to the front stage. "Don't even start with that. Get out there. Conway's not advancing to the finals that easily. If I had to work my way up, so will he."

The young girl still looked apprehensive. "But Janelle…"

"… Will have to suck it up and deal," Paul finished for her. "She can't make you forfeit."

"Actually, she's probably marching over here right now," Mina informed him. "You know, to drag me out of the competition…"

Paul looked back to the door on the opposite side of the room and nodded. "Thanks for letting me know. I'll take care of it."

"You're not really thinking of locking her out, are you?" Mina asked him, worried.

"No," Paul answered as he made his way to the other door. He promptly locked it and started looking for things to barricade it if she was really as fearsome as she seemed. "I _am_ locking her out. There's a difference."

After turning around, Paul happened to look at the television and noticed the familiar woman in yellow was back on the screen. "I think they're about to start the next round now. Go on out there, and don't hesitate to make it hard on Conway, okay?"

Knowing it was time to compete for a spot in the finals and being allowed to do so in her own right, Mina nodded to Paul with a smile and left, appearing on the television screen soon afterwards. Paul sat down and watched the screen intently, as he knew it was important in his position as a finalist to study the battling techniques of his two would-be opponents.

This is something he did not plan on sleeping through, as he usually would do (or at least _claim_ to do).

* * *

"Time's up!"

It was Marian's voice. Somehow, that energetic and youthful voice managed to bring Paul out of his slumber. He woke up to find that Conway and Mina were still on the screen, but had stopped their battle. Paul was too drowsy to understand the scoreboard, as at a first glance, it appeared to be too hard to tell. Both Conway's Slowking and Mina's Jumpluff were worn down from their brutal battle.

"Another close call!" Marian noted. "But the Coordinator who will be moving on to the finals is… Conway!!"

Paul's eyes widened. Though he had prepared himself for such a scenario, it was still a lot to take. After all, both of them had never entered a Contest before. With only basic training, Paul and Conway overcame the odds and escalated themselves to the finals, where one of them would come walking out of the Contest Hall with a ribbon in their hand.

"So our final match has been determined!" Marian announced, gesturing to the chart which displayed the full progress of the Plumeria Town Contest. "The Veilstone City boys, Paul and Conway, are our finalists who will battle for the coveted Plumeria Ribbon! We'll begin the final battle shortly after this brief intermission!"

Various members of the live viewing audience used this time to refill their drinks and restock their snack supply. Conway had already retreated to the waiting room opposite to Paul's, presumably to restore his Slowking before the final battle. Mina seemingly disappeared completely while Marian was talking. She never returned to the waiting room Paul was in, so it was anyone's guess as to her whereabouts after her loss. Still, it was safe to assume she reunited with Janelle and chances were low that either of them would remain in the Contest Hall any longer.

Then, it suddenly hit Paul: he had slept through most of the previous battle despite intending to watch it from beginning to end. A brutal instance of irony, it was. He didn't remember when exactly he dozed off or why, but Paul didn't have time to worry about that now: it was time to battle. With his Honchkrow at full health, Paul walked down the short hallway that would lead to the stage.

It had come down to this; either Conway would win and stand a good chance of parting with Paul for good after this Contest, or Paul would win and forever be haunted by the ribbon he would have to remember this day by. At this point, Paul honestly wasn't sure which result would be the lesser of the two evils. But to settle this bet once and for all, Paul knew he had to give it his all regardless, just as Conway planned to.

"And now, it's time!" Marian called out after the intermission had come and gone. "Only two Coordinators remain in this competition, and it's time to see which young man comes out on top, leaving this Contest Hall with the Plumeria Ribbon! Our finalists are both from Veilstone City, so one more time, let's welcome Conway and Paul…!"

Both competitors arrived on stage at the same time, coming from opposite ends. The sagely space warrior Conway looked quite comfortable and confident about his chances; he smirked upon finally seeing Paul for the first time since the battling rounds began. This was exactly what he planned for all along, and it tickled the nerd pink that it all worked out the way he wanted it to in the end.

The ninja of the dark arts, Paul, masked his insecurities with his typical stoic expressions. Normally, one would find him hard to read, but Paul was put off when he noticed Conway still looking calm and collected in the face of adversity.

"So, we meet again, at last," Conway told Paul; an eerie tone was present in his voice. "The circle is now complete. In the beginning, we were but the learners. And now… we have truly become the masters."

"Only masters of glorified beauty pageants, Conway," Paul countered, sounding irritated. "It's not nearly as prestigious as you make it out to be."

Conway nodded, grinning at his opponent. The lenses of his glasses briefly gleamed in the sunlight. "Our opinions may clash, but that's hardly the matter at hand now, correct? It _is_ time for you and I to do battle and settle the score once and for all."

Just as Paul was about to retort, he thought maybe this was the time now to finally ask that question that had been tormenting him for this entire portion of the competition.

"Conway, there's something I need to ask you," Paul said stiffly, trying to keep his tone as neutral as he possibly could.

The older boy raised an eyebrow at his companion, now his adversary, and looked intrigued. "You wish to ask me a question?" he asked for the sake of clarification.

Paul nodded back to him. "It's important."

"Ask away," Conway offered. Casual as he seemed, he was quite interested in what sort of question was on Paul's mind, as his tone seemed oddly sincere.

After taking a deep breath, Paul mustered up the will to ask the question that was both incredulous and critical to him. "Conway," he started, sounding uneasy already; not a good sign for him. "About this final battle… if you win-"

"The clock is set, ladies and gentleman!" Marian suddenly interrupted. "In five minutes, the winner will be decided! Gentleman, take your positions and release your Pokémon!"

Conway shrugged at Paul, indeed helpless to fight against the way the show was run. "Guess you'll have to ask me later," he figured, waving to Paul before taking his position. "Remember, the Force is with you… always!"

Paul rolled his eyes and took his position on the stage, quick to take out Honchkrow's Pokéball. Though it frustrated him to no end that things yet again were not going his way, that anger did well enough to fuel his desire to battle.

He was the first one to send his Pokémon out. "Honchkrow, stand by for battle!"

Again, the Big Boss Pokémon flew out of a dark plume of smoke emerging from the Ball Capsule. It stood on the stage, primping its feathers and preparing for the final match.

"Come forth, Slowking!" Conway shouted, tossing his Pokéball out to unleash his strongest, most trusted partner onto the stage. A flurry of stars and musical notes from the seals on Slowking's Ball Capsule accompanied the Royal Pokémon as it proudly stood and sized up its opponent. That was quite a gutsy gesture, considering Slowking had a significant type disadvantage against the Dark-typed Honchkrow.

"It's Slowking versus Honchkrow!" Marian confirmed. "Who will walk out of here our winner today? Let's find out right now! Begin the battle…!"

The boys wasted no time going on the offensive just as the countdown began.

"Barrel roll your way over to Slowking and use Night Slash!" Paul ordered. He had practiced various flight maneuvers the previous day, testing out how well certain attacks would show up by putting little spins on them. This technique in particular was one of his favorites and saved it specifically for the final match. As Honchkrow's wings emanated with an eerie purple glow, streaks of that hue were left behind as it made its way over to the opponent.

With an attack like this, Paul expected that Slowking would use Protect and already had a backup plan on standby. However, he was surprised to see Slowking stand sturdily and take the full hit. The effective attack was powerful enough to knock the tall and heavy Pokémon back, though with one foot, he remained balanced and never hit the floor. Conway's points still slid down to 91%, but apparently presentation was important even when taking a hit.

"Slowking just stood there and took that hit without doing a thing!" Marian announced, apparently surprised herself. "But what concentration…! A hit like that should have sent it flying like its opponent, but even on one foot, it's perfectly in balance! It could have been much worse, but just what is this duo planning?!"

"He's up to something," Paul realized. "He might even know what I'm going to do next…"

After a short moment of bracing for whatever retaliation Conway had in mind, only to find he had none to give, Paul frowned and decided to change his plan. "Show them we mean business, Honchkrow! Cover the field with Haze!"

Like in the previous battle, Honchkrow filled the entire stage with a dark, obscuring smoke. Honchkrow flew well above it, able to be seen, but Slowking was completely obscured just as Crawdaunt once was.

"Hm," Conway remarked with amusement. "Paul, did you assume I did not watch your battle with Janelle? It seems rather foolhardy for you to repeat your strategy with me, because even without having seen it beforehand, I would catch on very quickly to your motives."

"Don't assume I would be so careless!" Paul shouted back. "You wanted effort, so I'm giving it to you! It's more than what you're doing, anyway!" He sharply looked to Honchkrow. "You need to strike with more power, Honchkrow. Dive down with Sky Attack!"

With a nod, Honchkrow glowed brightly and dove down into its self-made realm of darkness, easily standing out with great contrast. As the attack charged itself up, the speed and force of Honchkrow's movement was strong enough to briefly erase the precise area of Haze where Honchkrow had been, effectively blowing it off to the sides. The Big Boss Pokémon was even easier to see, and the execution of the move was already costing Conway points before the hit even connected.

Honchkrow steadily made its way closer and closer to Slowking, who remained still in the area of Haze that had not yet been removed. Paul grew increasingly concerned at Conway's silence, noticing his opponent's points now had an extra 10% or so shaven off. When Paul looked away, Conway finally decided to play.

"_Now_ use Protect, Slowking," Conway allowed, as if he and his partner had a silent debate over what the first move would be earlier. Slowking happily obliged, covering itself in a field of energy. Due to still being obscured in Haze, Honchkrow itself did not notice the faint glow until it was too late. Honchkrow collided with the barrier, trying with all its might to break through with the extremely powerful Sky Attack, but that energy was simply reflected back to Honchkrow for being in such close proximity to begin with. Paul didn't even realize what was happening until he heard the initial collision, and by then it was already too late.

The collision itself shook away the Haze that had covered the scene, making it obvious to the viewers what had happened. With the same powerful energy, shining brightly, Honchkrow was thrown back across the entirety of the stage and skidded across the ground until it was right in front of Paul. The crowd reacted loudly to the unexpected twist, as did Marian.

"And Honchkrow goes down!" she said. "Looks like Slowking had it all planned out from the beginning! That's going to hurt for Paul _and_ his points!"

"Huh?" Paul didn't even think to check, but he was more than a little intimidated upon realizing that single act had almost made him even with Conway's remaining points. Indeed, he had every reason to be concerned about Conway as an opponent here. His timing was impeccable.

"And now you'll wish you had never egged me on," Conway said ominously; his glasses flashing as he smirked. "Alright, Slowking! Let's get this main event rolling and use Water Pulse continuously!"

Slowking nodded and did as its trainer wished. Holding its hands up in the air, it began to conjure a shimmering ball of water. Since Conway said to keep it up, the ball was growing much larger than usual, and as Honchkrow started to recover from the last attack, Paul had a hard time keeping his eyes off of Slowking.

"He just keeps hitting hard…" Paul noted, very wary of his opponent's plans now. "Honchkrow, let's not allow him to finish that up. If we can screw up Slowking's concentration, that'll cost Conway a good deal of points. So get out there and use Aerial Ace!"

Now ready to fight back, Honchkrow nodded to its trainer and became airborne once again. Not bothering with time-consuming techniques this time, Honchkrow directly flew at its target with the move that couldn't be dodged.

"That's the way to do it; play right into my hands," Conway quietly coaxed, waiting until Honchkrow was at the ideal distance. "Now, unleash your attack, Slowking!"

Water Pulse had nearly become twice Slowking's size by the time the order was issued. Still, Slowking had no trouble lobbing the ball of water at the Big Boss Pokémon.

Seeing a collision was about to take place again, Paul decided to make his plan specific for his Pokémon. "Don't try to dodge it!" he mandated. "Fly right through it and keep going until you hit Slowking! That'll score us a hit _and_ screw up his move!"

"The water may be denser than you think," Conway forewarned, chuckling to himself. "Slowking, you know what to do!"

He spoke as if he expected Paul to know what he had in mind, and had Paul watched Conway's match against Mina, he might have known what was coming. Instead, he was letting Honchkrow dive headfirst into an unknown danger… not that Paul hadn't ordered such a thing in the past, but now it seemed like an especially dumb move to make after Conway acknowledge Paul's motives. Still, Paul had no time to improvise; Honchkrow dove right into that sphere of water.

"Use Psychic around the water!" Conway commanded. "Quickly…!"

Before Honchkrow could exit from the other side of the Water Pulse attack (seemingly not that effected by the attack itself), an outline of blue energy enveloped the sphere. As a result, Honchkrow felt as if it just flew straight into a wall and was left suspended in the water. It was very disorienting for the victim Pokémon, and it was slightly disturbing for Paul to watch.

"Astounding!" Marian shouted. "Ladies and gentleman, I believe this is the combination Conway tried – and failed – against the previous battle with Mina! Her Grass-typed Jumpluff was able to resist the water and break out of this trap quickly, but will Honchkrow be able to do the same despite a lack of resistance to Water-type attacks?!"

Paul was paying for his dozing off in a big way. Honchkrow looked utterly helpless submerged in Conway's aquatic prison. Paul was losing points, but he wasn't even paying attention to that right now. His main priority was figuring out how to get Honchkrow out of that trap.

"Honchkrow may lack a resistance to Water-type attacks," Paul acknowledged. "But there _is_ an immunity to Psychic-type attacks! All it should take is a well-focused Night Slash to get Honchkrow out of there, and then this combination will be useless!"

"You honestly think I'm going to make it that easy for you?" Conway asked him rhetorically. "Slowking, let us dazzle the crowd with your psychic abilities, shall we? That should keep Honchkrow from being able to focus until his oxygen runs out and we win by default."

Paul completely forgot to take Honchkrow's lack of ability to breathe underwater into account. His Pokémon was likely in a state of panic right now; immune or not, Honchkrow was trapped with no obvious way out and no way to breathe; it would be very difficult for it to even hear any command of Paul's this way.

Thinking of it now, this could almost be considered a little cruel by Conway's standards; such a plan seemed more suited to Paul's style. It was then Paul realized how much his presence around Conway must have influenced him just as much as Conway's presence influenced Paul himself over the past month they spent traveling together.

However, this was no time to dwell on their partnership; Paul needed to find a way to set his Pokémon free before he lost the Contest by knockout.

"Let's please the crowd, shall we?" Conway suggested to his partner Pokémon. "An ordinary sphere of water suspended in midair can only hold an audience for so long. Let's make some shapes! Continue with Psychic, please…!"

Slowking was more than happy to oblige; using its psychic powers, the water sphere's form began to morph into varying shapes. The audience was consistently amused with this mockery of Honchkrow while Paul's points were going down chunks at a time as the act went on.

"What an amazing display of power!" Marian said in awe. "But how long can Honchkrow last without any air?! If Honchkrow loses consciousness, this battle is over!"

"Tell me something I don't know," Paul muttered under his breath before glaring back at the precarious situation at hand. "Honchkrow, if you can hear me, use Night Slash!"

The lack of response on Honchkrow's part indicated that it was unable to hear its trainer's calls. There was nothing Paul could do for his Pokémon and it frustrated him. Honchkrow was still conscious, evident by its squirming and thrashing about underneath the water, but its energy was running out quickly.

Meanwhile, Conway was making it all the more difficult for Honchkrow to calm down by using Slowking's psychic abilities to elongate the thick shape of water into a thinner line shape; the reason for the larger-than-usual Water Pulse initially was obvious now. Conway needed the extra space to accommodate Honchkrow's size within the prison of water.

"Let's see if Honchkrow's up for a little jump rope," Conway suggested to Slowking, who understood the implication. The "rope" of water was now being swung about with psychic power in the movement of a jump rope, swirling Honchkrow about all the more. The crowd loved this display of psychic prowess and Paul's points continued to suffer for it.

"Come _on_, Honchkrow!" Paul urged, unable to think of what else to do in this situation. "Use Night Slash or we're going to lose this!"

Yet the Big Boss Pokémon was still unable to hear Paul's voice beyond the psychic wall and the water flowing rapidly within. This act had already brought Paul down to 25% of his points and there was still one minute and thirty seconds left on the clock. Conway's points were remained in the realm of 80%.

"It's true no one act can go on forever," Conway admitted. "Let's wrap this up so you can rest; does that sound good, Slowking?" He didn't need a response from Slowking to know said Pokémon was wearing itself out with this complicated combination.

Paul was offended by this. "You think this is over already, don't you?!"

"I _know_ it is," Conway clarified, looking quite proud of himself. "You're in a tight spot and you can't deny it. But unlike you, I am rather merciful, so I'll end this tirade before your Honchkrow suffocates; I believe I've made my point in who the better man is in this competition, Paul." He nodded to Slowking. "Let's finish this up with a fantastic Power Gem!"

"Power Gem?!" Paul had learned of this move some time ago while studying up on strategy techniques. Though visually impressive, Power Gem was a simple move with no positive or negative added affect beyond the basic damage it brought… as a _Rock_-type move.

As Honchkrow had a weakness for that type added with the situation it was currently in, Paul knew Power Gem would stop him in his tracks for certain. He wanted Honchkrow out of there before the move would make contact, but there was no way out of this mess. Paul was about to lose, and he was going to lose by a landslide.

"It's over…" Paul acknowledged quietly as a brilliant sparkling ball of amber took form in the air above the Water Pulse/Psychic combination. The younger trainer bowed his head, already admitting defeat and hating every moment of doing so. He couldn't bring himself to watch the moment actually happen.

What everyone failed to take into account was the fact that Slowking was juggling three attacks at once at this point. Honchkrow was pushed to its limits, but so was Slowking just by an insane amount of multi-tasking. The Royal Pokémon could handle this, but there was something it couldn't handle:

A plan not following the way it was supposed to.

Just before Power Gem made contact with the bird Pokémon in the ball of water, Honchkrow itself became consumed in a dark aura of energy, prompting the audience (and Conway) to gasp. The audience knew what to expect with Conway's plans, so Paul was prompted to look back up at the scene as well.

The entirety of Water Pulse (and Psychic along with it) practically _exploded_ all it once as Honchkrow shot straight out of its confinement as if the barriers were made of thin paper. The visuals of this watery, magical burst of energy were well enough to save Paul's points from dipping into single digits and for Conway to finally suffer some point loss for his precious combination failing him at last.

With dark energy still trailing behind the Big Boss Pokémon, Honchkrow zoomed straight up the short distance between its position in the water and the Power Gem attack and with a powerful swipe of its wing, thrust the attack up and back at the sender, covering Power Gem itself with dark energy.

In an instant, Slowking was slammed back by a Dark-typed variant of its own attack and was sent flying onto its back while Conway's points took another big hit.

"I-it can't be," Conway stuttered, purely in disbelief. "That move isn't learned normally…"

Paul was every bit as shocked as Conway, and he was the one with the advantage. "Then Honchkrow learned…"

"Sucker Punch!" Marian confirmed to everyone. "In a moment of crisis, Honchkrow summoned its energy, willpower, and determination to learn Sucker Punch in spite of its situation! Wow, you don't see that every day!"

"You certainly don't," Conway remarked, adjusting his glasses with his eyes widened. "Being backed into a corner like that… Honchkrow must really be something…"

Paul, however, knew that this wasn't over yet and the clock was still ticking. He had under a minute left to fell his opponent and his work was cut out for him. Conway proved to be a tricky opponent even in spite of type disadvantages.

"Very touching, but the fight isn't over yet!" Paul reminded everyone; especially Honchkrow. "We've got some catching up to do, Honchkrow!"

Running purely on adrenaline, Honchkrow knew what needed to be done. This was one instance where having very little time left was a good thing; otherwise Honchkrow's adrenaline alone wouldn't be enough to keep the Pokémon going for the remainder of the battle if it dragged out.

"While Slowking's still out of it, let's take it down with Night Slash!" Paul commanded, and Honchkrow carried it out.

"Nngh! Slowking! Get up!" Conway wailed, waving his hands at his Pokémon in a panic. "Hurry, before Honchkrow reaches our side and…!"

Too late; Honchkrow side-swiped the partially-Psychic Pokémon and promptly u-turned back to its side after connecting the hit. The blazing streak of purple light sat very well with the viewers and helped preserve what little remained of Paul's points while Conway's were dragged down again.

"You're not done yet," Paul sternly reminded. "Honchkrow, go back over there right now and use Sky Attack!"

Honchkrow already looked to be sick of this, but obeyed its trainer nonetheless and went back the way it came, charging up the attack.

Slowking was quickly looking worse for wear due to sheer exhaustion as well, but Conway wasn't having any of it. "Use Power Gem again, Slowking! It'll reach Honchkrow before it comes at us with its attack!"

Indeed, the crystalline amber ball Slowking formed and sent out quickly flew in Honchkrow's way, but Paul knew how to counter this now.

"Send it right back!" Paul commanded. "Cancel Sky Attack and use Sucker Punch!"

Just like before, a single darkness-imbued wing of Honchkrow's flawlessly knocked back the Power Gem attack as if it was a cotton ball and was sent back flying right at Slowking's face.

"We're not falling for that again!" Conway shouted. "Slowking, Protect!"

The barrier Slowking formed held up against the onslaught, which shattered around it into millions of sparkling pieces. Both Paul and Conway lost points as a result of the nature of the exchanges.

But there was no time to sit back and admire the aesthetics if one was Paul or Conway.

"Slowking, Water Pulse!" Conway cried out in desperation; there was no ulterior motive this time, as the tenuousness of the situation left Conway in mental distraught. All he knew is that this move wouldn't be a waste of time to use against Honchkrow like Psychic would now.

"Dodge and use Aerial Ace!" Paul also quickly commanded, opting for the speediest result rather than choosing to rely on Sky Attack again.

Honchkrow managed to dodge Slowking's Water Pulse with relative ease, and Conway's points suffered for Honchkrow's fancy dodging techniques; at this point, the backlash on Conway for his previous teasing were sending his remaining points in the danger zone.

"Protect, Protect!" Conway panicked, but only freaked out more when he realized it failed to work this time and Slowking was completely subject to yet another hit. Honchkrow faced down the Royal Pokémon from its aerial position and swung down its shining wing.

"Time's up!"

Both Conway and Paul gasped simultaneously as Honchkrow's attack finished connecting and sent Slowking on the ground; down, but not out. Both competitors were so absorbed in the fight that it had been a while since either of them checked the status of their points.

"What a fight," Marian remarked. "Intense _and_ beautiful! These two Coordinators definitely battled down to the wire; just look how close the scores were: both in relation to each other and how close both were to running out completely!"

Indeed, both Paul and Conway's points only barely hovered above zero, each with only a tiny sliver left shown on the screen.

"But when all's said and done, the winner is… Conway!!"

Both trainers promptly fell to their knees after hearing the news. The crowd roared with enthusiasm, showing their appreciation for a long, hard battle on both ends. Excitement was in the air and everyone in the Contest Hall could feel it. Even through the television, Reggie and Maylene were every bit as psyched as the live audience. It seemed only Saturn remained calm as the finals ended. Even though his cousin came out the winner, none of that really mattered to him. All this meant was that his plan would very soon be carried out by his coworker. Saturn looked forward to seeing those results, if nothing else.

"You mean I won…?" Conway asked no one in particular with a distant voice. "I really, really won…?"

"He won…" Paul acknowledged, also to no one but himself. "He really, really won…"

Both Slowking and Honchkrow were simply glad this battle was behind them now. It was going to take a while for the shock to wear off on Conway, but Paul recovered more quickly and got back on his feet. As usual, he gave his Pokémon no words of encouragement (or any words at all, really) before returning it back to its Pokéball.

"So that's how it is…" Paul said in a quiet voice. "Conway wins the Contest just like he wanted to… this was the best possible result," he decided. Or at least, he tried convincing himself that was the case, but now he really wasn't sure deep down. "It's not like I wanted to win this stupid thing for real… Contests are pointless."

Still, he couldn't resist smiling weakly at his companion, who was in tears with happiness now and gratuitously thanking his Slowking for a job well done.

"But for something so pointless, I guess it can mean _something_ from another view," Paul figured. "One man's trash is another man's treasure."

Once Conway was finally brought down to reality, the award ceremony swiftly followed the battle. Mister Contesta, Sukizo, and Nurse Joy were all lined up while Conway, Castform, and Slowking stood on a podium with Marian on one side and Paul at the other.

"And now, here's Chief of the Pokémon Activities Committee, Mister Contesta!" Marian introduced one last time. "He has the distinct honor of presenting the Plumeria Ribbon to Conway!"

Conway looked eager as Mister Contesta came forward and presented the case containing the twilight lavender-colored ribbon he just earned.

"Congratulations again, sir, and much luck in the future," Contesta wished the young man as he held out the case for Conway to reach over and pluck out the ribbon inside.

"Oh, thanks so much!" Conway said graciously, bowing to his elder before taking what was now his: The Plumeria Ribbon. A day like this only used to come in his dreams… he only prayed Dawn was watching this moment right now and truly appreciating him for what he was: a talented competitor and a worthy rival, should the two ever meet in a Contest someday. He admired the sight of the golden medal with the two purple-hued strands hanging from it, but knew the best thing to do was to relish in his victory and hold the Plumeria Ribbon up for all to see. "How about that?! I just won the Plumeria Ribbon! My very first one and I earned it all by myself…!"

"Cast, caaaast!" Castform cheered alongside its trainer.

"Slowking, slow!" Slowking agreed in kind.

Paul just smirked and shook his head. "You're really taking all the credit for yourself, Conway?"

Upon hearing that humbling statement, Conway smiled sheepishly and scratched his head. "Well, you _did_ play an integral role to my inspiration," he admitted. "You're like my male Dawn in a way!"

That was not a response Paul expected, and he backed away a little from Conway as a result. "Please don't ever say that again."

"Sorry!" Conway apologized, though he laughed soon after. "It's just so exciting, you know? I'm not even paying attention to what I'm saying! This is even better than when I won the Cobble Badge!"

Paul nodded. "Well, not just because you're doing this to impress that girl, Conway," he said nonchalantly, which made Conway pause and look at him inquisitively. "Maylene is not that talented a trainer, whereas I am. Don't you think you got a more worthwhile battle out of me overall?"

"Maybe," Conway said, smirking and purposely sounding uncertain. "But I did have a three-on-three Gym Battle with her, compared to the one-on-one battle I just had with you. It's not such an easy comparison to make. The combination of finally getting to experience Dawn's field of expertise and having you as a rival is what makes this so special, Paul!"

To that, Paul just groaned. "Even when we agree, it still somehow manages to be such a headache…"

After a brief pause of silence, Conway smiled more sincerely at his companion. "Hey," he called out, getting Paul's attention. "We had fun, didn't we?"

"Not a chance," Paul stubbornly denied, though he smiled in spite of his tone. "I'm relieved I'm finally past this horrible obligation. I performed to your standards, didn't I?"

"You went above and beyond, my friend," Conway humbly admitted. "If the time hadn't run out before your last attack went through, you very well could have defeated me after all."

Holding his hands up, Paul looked repulsed by the prospect. "Don't even joke about that, Conway. I never wanted that ribbon; I'm _glad_ it's your responsibility."

Paul just got a knowing look in response from the Contest's winner. "You _did_ have fun."

"Mowing down those girls was satisfying, at least," Paul admitted. "But I still only did this because I'm not one who goes back on my word like a spineless coward."

"You had fun," Conway insisted, shaking his head at the younger trainer. It was lucky for Paul that suddenly the press was in on this fresh victory, freeing him from the obligation of having to reply to Conway.

Conway himself looked surprised to see a video camera aimed at him by a professional cameraman while Marian turned her attention to the scene.

"So, Conway! As the Plumeria Contest winner, do you have any thoughts you'd like to share?" Marian asked him. "The people would like to know!"

After a moment, Conway's starstruck expressions sobered down into a devious smirk. Paul couldn't help but wonder what Conway was up to as he approached the camera with confidence.

"As a matter of fact, I would," Conway replied calmly, before digging into his pocket and pulling out another small trinket: the Cobble Badge.

Now Paul was even more confused. "What are you-"

"IN YOUR FACE!" Conway shouted aloud to the camera, stunning everyone. "Are you watching this, Franny?! In. Your. _Face!_ Just check this out…!" He thrust both the badge and the ribbon towards the camera. "I've now won my first Gym Battle _and_ my first Contest all in under a month! What have you done lately that didn't involve sitting your butt down on the couch and reading a book, huh? Oh, that's right! _Nothing!_"

This left everyone but Paul confused. "Franny…?" Marian asked if she heard that correctly, a bit put off by Conway's enthusiasm.

"My big sister, of course," Conway answered. "All my life she put me down for being a nobody who wouldn't amount to anything, but _she_ doesn't have a Gym Badge or a Contest Ribbon to show for all of _her_ hot air! She doesn't even have a job!"

Even Paul was quite shocked at the trash-talk he was witnessing. He perhaps wondered if he rubbed off on Conway a little too much…

"So I've officially surpassed you, Franny!" Conway shouted at the camera, pointing dramatically. "You can't argue your way out of this one! Sloan's not going to want to hire you after he sees this, now will he?!"

Back at Galactic Headquarters, Saturn raised an eyebrow in reaction to hearing his given name on live television. He was generally a little embarrassed to come from this gene pool, but watching something like this made him wish he belonged to an entirely different family.

Meanwhile, at Veilstone City in the luxury house of Conway's family, Franny was indeed watching this Contest as per her brother's request over the phone and was gaping in shock for several reasons. This was definitely not a good time to have inattentive parents, because Franny definitely needed some to scold her brother for this dastardly deed.

Further away in the same town, Maylene and Reggie were rendered speechless. Reggie wondered if this sort of wrath from a younger sibling was really how things came off between him and Paul when their relations soured. He certainly hoped that wasn't the case.

"Well, uh, thanks for sharing your thoughts!" Marian said awkwardly, hoping to cut him off quickly.

"My pleasure, Marian!" Conway assured, moving close up to the camera one last time. "Much love to you, Dawn, wherever you are! Win that Grand Festival for both of us…!"

Marian was more than eager to segue to officially closing the show. "And with that, ladies and gentleman, one more action-packed Contest has gone down on the record books! As we bring down the curtain today on the Plumeria Town Contest, I wish you all farewell, and a hope that we see you again next time…!"

And with that, the Plumeria Town Contest was over, and now a past chapter in the lives of Paul and Conway.

* * *

The boys left the Contest Hall and went straight to the Pokémon Center to fully restore the health of Slowking and Honchkrow from the last battle. Both were packed up and eager to finally leave town.

"Here you are, boys!" Nurse Joy confirmed, giving them each their respective Pokéball. "Slowking and Honchkrow are as good as new. You both put on quite a Contest battle today; very impressive."

"Why, it was our pleasure, Nurse Joy!" Conway thanked, nudging Paul. "Wasn't it, Paul?"

Paul rolled his eyes as he stored Honchkrow's Pokéball with the others. "Yes, a riot and a half," he said tersely before bowing to Nurse Joy. "Thank you for your services." He then looked sharply to Conway. "Now let's get out of here."

Conway nodded to his companion as both turned towards the front door and started to leave. "Yes, we've done all we can here. If we hurry, we can reach Squallville before the sun goes down!"

"And where will that put us in relation to Snowpoint City?" Paul asked impatiently.

"Pretty close, believe it or not," Conway replied after checking the map. "We could be no more than a day or two away by the time we hit Squallville."

"Well, next time, don't sneak into any secret competitions before we leave," Paul warned. "You're very lucky that I was tied down to the obligation due to the fact that you won the bet, but I'm free of that now."

While Paul was right, Conway still smirked. "You're still not rid of me, unfortunately. And while you are free from the bet, I still wouldn't say you've truly repaid me for _all_ I did for you since we hooked up in Canalave City… for that, you'd have to save my life. _Twice_."

Upon hearing that, Paul growled at his traveling companion. "Don't say we 'hooked up', Conway! That makes it sound like we're going out or something."

"But we _are_ going out," Conway insisted, but couldn't resist a small laugh. "Of town, that is!"

That earned him a slap against the head. It felt good for Paul to finally inflict a little violence on Conway.

Just before either of them could exit through the front doors, Nurse Joy approached the boys.

"Oh, excuse me!" she called out, sounding humbled. "I'm so sorry to bother you on your way out, but you have a phone call from Veilstone City, Paul."

"Veilstone City?!" both Paul and Conway shouted in unison.

Nurse Joy nodded, oblivious to the nature of their reactions. "A young man named Reggie… your brother, perhaps? He does look very much like you, Paul…"

Conway began to look nervous. "You don't suppose he saw that Contest, do you…?"

"It… could be a coincidence," Paul tried telling himself, but he was thinking exactly what Conway was thinking nonetheless. "Either way, we'd better not risk it."

"You're rejecting the call?" Conway asked, understanding the implication. "Just leaving Reggie in the dark like that…?"

Paul shook his head vehemently. "I'm definitely not in the mood to chat about this now if that _is_ why he called," he explained, looking to Nurse Joy. "Tell him I just stepped out. I'll call him later on my own time once I reach Squallville."

Reluctantly, Nurse Joy nodded. "Of course, if that's what you want…"

"It is," Paul coldly assured. He expectantly looked to Conway. "Let's go."

Looking just as uneasy, Conway nodded to Paul and turned to leave, but paused briefly. "Nurse Joy, were there any calls for me while I was out…?"

"I'm sorry to say that isn't the case," Nurse Joy reported. "Were you expecting one, Conway?"

"Sort of," he said softly, smiling yet looking depressed. "I thought maybe my cousin would have called by now to congratulate me… but he's probably busy as usual. Maybe he'll call later. Don't worry about it, Nurse Joy."

Nurse Joy bowed to the boys somberly. "If you say so… good luck for the rest of your journey, you two."

"Thanks," Paul said before dragging Conway out of the Pokémon Center with him. "Come on, we're behind schedule enough as it is!"

Now, Plumeria Town as a whole was behind them.

* * *

Later that day, Paul and Conway made steady progress towards Squallville. The route they took required them both to pass through a few miles of frozen tundra before reaching the windy path that would take them to town, but luckily both were well-suited for the weather this time. Conway had bought Paul a thick hooded coat; a darker blue than his jacket, with a pair of cadet blue gloves. Since Paul was otherwise well-suited enough for the weather, that was all he needed. Conway, however, required a full change of wardrobe. Even his glasses were replaced by a pair of prescription goggles that functioned as glasses that wouldn't fog up on him. His thick forest green scarf warmed his neck while his olive-colored coat kept the rest of his body nice and toasty. His gloves matched the color of his scarf while his legs were protected with a thick pair of dark brown pants and black snow boots.

"Nice and warm now, aren't we?" Conway taunted as they hiked their way up a mountain path. Deep snow surrounded them both, as that sort of weather was common in this area.

Even now, snow was falling steadily and the wind was beginning to pick up, likely meaning a blizzard was coming in their direction. Unlike last time, however, Paul and Conway were well-equipped for the weather and wouldn't need to seek shelter for hours. As long as they could still see the road, they were fine.

"Shut up," Paul spat back. "You look ridiculous with those things on, you know."

"Hey, you know I'm blind as a Zubat without my glasses!" Conway complained. "And if they fog up, I might as well not have them at all. You didn't want me to hold you back, so I came prepared."

Paul just shrugged. "I didn't know goggles like that even existed."

"They're quite expensive," Conway noted. "That's probably why you don't hear about them much."

Ready to change the subject already, Paul sighed. "I can't believe you're still with me after all this time…"

"You can't change it now, Paul!" Conway retorted cheerfully. "We're in this together through thick and thin! Nothing's tearing us apart! Besides, Reggie asked me to do this. I can't possibly let him down after being treated so kindly by him."

There was an awkward pause before Paul could talk back. "… Is that the only reason why you're still here? Because he told you to stick with me?"

"What kind of question is that, Paul?" Conway asked him rhetorically. "I was with you well before he asked me to help out! I'm psyched he asked, because you probably would have found a way to get rid of me by now if you weren't so tied down to his word yourself. But to be perfectly honest, Paul, I've enjoyed our time together. And if I hadn't met you again, I wouldn't have a Gym Badge or a Contest Ribbon right now! You've done more for me than you realize."

Paul never thought of it that way, really, but he still looked skeptical. "You won the Contest, though. You proved yourself to be a competent Coordinator, but as far as I'm concerned, we're not going anywhere near a Contest ever again."

Conway just smiled contentedly. "I figured as much."

"But don't you want to keep doing Contests?" Paul asked, finding it hard to believe that Conway was fine with being held back. "You like them, you're determined to win over that girl through them… but you're never going to achieve any of that with me."

"There's always next year," Conway brought up, not sounding bothered at all. "I wouldn't have made it to the Grand Festival this late in the game, anyway. Did you really think I was going to up and leave you now of all times just because I won a ribbon?"

"Sort of," Paul admitted. "It's a logical conclusion, I mean."

Conway nodded in agreement. "I suppose it is…" Then he smirked. "You didn't want me to leave, did you?"

"I expected you to leave!" Paul insisted, looking flustered. "I only fought as hard as I did because that was part of the deal I had with you to begin with!"

"Honchkrow learned a new move through this experience," Conway mentioned; Paul nearly forgot about that. "You can't say you came out of this Contest with absolutely nothing."

To randomly change the main topic like that, Paul was suspicious. "What are you implying?"

Apparently, Conway noticed the uncertainties of his companion, because he still remained calm in the face of accusation. "Nothing, really," he said. "Nothing more than that we've both gained a lot through our experiences together. Maybe at some point we'll come to that fork in the road in our lives, but right now, I can't imagine anywhere else I'd rather be than at your side."

"That girl's side would be one such place," Paul was quick to bring up.

"Touché," Conway conceded. "Though who knows if she would tolerate me for long periods of time the way you do, Paul…"

"Tolerate? What an overstatement," Paul said, blowing off the compliment. "You're extremely fortunate that I let you follow me around at all. I've just run into quite a bit of bad luck because of you."

Conway simply wagged his finger at Paul. "There is a stigma attached to the Murkrow species, you know," he informed. "How long was it before yours evolved? You still had it in its basic stage during the Tag Battle Tournament, right?"

Paul nodded hesitantly. "Yes… it evolved to Honchkrow when I battled Maylene, so it's been that way for a while now. What's your point?"

"They say a Murkrow brings bad luck," Conway told him. "Perhaps yours started a chain reaction when you met me initially in that tournament."

"I won that tournament," Paul reminded him. "That isn't exactly bad luck."

"But… you were partnered with Ash the entire time," Conway countered. "And you met me, which you claim started a stream of bad luck that presumably lasts even today. Even if it was a delayed reaction…"

Paul shoved Conway aside in retaliation. "I'm not much of a believer in superstition, Conway. You can shut up anytime now."

Conway took it all in stride. After all, having won a Contest was more than enough to keep him happy for a week. Still being at Paul's side against the odds was even better. He knew in his heart that this was the perfect day he always asked for.

"You're right," he admitted. "Because the power's been inside us all this time… and it's our friendship that made this all work out."

For once, Paul didn't feel like arguing the "friendship" point. Somehow, he just felt content that he wouldn't be finishing this journey to Snowpoint City alone after all. Conway had proven his loyalty by giving up his chance to pursue Contests (and Dawn) just to continue to stay with Paul.

For the first time, Paul was truly impressed. Not that he would ever admit it, but he was impressed.

"Oh my gosh, Paul!" Conway suddenly shouted out. "Look! A Pokémon swarm!"

Indeed, it had been said on certain days, flocks of rare Pokémon would come by Route 216. Today in particular featured a group of Smoochum cheerfully making their way through the snow. This was their natural climate, so they seemed to rather enjoy their surroundings.

Suddenly, Paul felt that respect he had for Conway dwindling already. "So what?"

"Isn't it cool?" Conway asked him, obviously having not witnessed such an event before, however small it was.

"It's just a bunch of Smoochum," Paul tried to reason. "They're worthless and definitely not something that's going to put us further behind. Let's keep moving."

"But I want one…!" Conway whined. "Remember when I told you I would be really psyched to have one? Don't you?"

Paul sighed. "Save it for some other time. You really could do better, Conway. If you want an Ice-type that badly, I'll find you some actually worth catching later. But for now, we need to focus on reaching Squallville." He looked up at the sky with concern. "We have no idea just how rough the weather's going to get."

Logic was just one thing Conway could not fight in most cases. Giving the Smoochum one last glance, Conway hung his head and followed Paul past them. "I guess you're right… getting to Squallville is priority one."

The duo continued along their path, leaving the Smoochum behind and unbothered. One happened to be paying attention; however, as she looked on towards the pair of humans until they were completely out of sight. Resigned to the fact that they would likely never be seen again, she turned her attention back towards her group and continued onwards in a different direction.

Like clockwork, Paul and Conway came into Mars' sight just like Saturn said they would. She hid behind a small group of trees just in case anyone passed by who might recognize Team Galactic and start a confrontation. Mars knew she couldn't risk anything messing up her mission; a ton of pizza was on the line, and she was determined to have it no matter the cost.

Nearby was a fork in the road, prompting the boys to stop and debate on which path to take. The helicopter Mars used to arrive in this location was well hidden further behind her, and the weather had gotten blustery enough to draw away any attention towards the slightly-conspicuous method of transportation. A small group of grunts were on standby to start up whenever Mars gave the signal.

"If the left path is shorter, let's take it already," Paul complained at Conway. "Stop being such a coward and live a little."

"Did you really not learn from your last mishap?" Conway reminded him, very annoyed. "The shorter path is not always the best one to take. The road less-traveled always involves a risk."

"Life is full of risks," Paul grumbled. "You can't avoid them forever, Conway."

Conway then looked rather snooty. "Well, _I'm_ the navigator and I _insist_ we go right."

"Well, this is _my_ journey and I say we go left," Paul countered, not intent on letting up this argument anytime soon.

"You're both right, but you're both wrong, too," said a new voice entering the conversation. Paul and Conway quickly turned around to see Mars standing right behind them.

As Mars was quite a looker in the eyes of many men, Conway was no exception. Dedicated as he was to Dawn, he couldn't help but appreciate a beauty. Paul, on the other hand, looked miffed that someone was meddling in their business.

"This doesn't involve you," Paul calmly told her. "If there's something you need, go ahead and say it. Otherwise, please go about your way."

"You're so rude, Paul," Conway muttered, shoving him aside and smiling to Mars. "I'm so sorry for my friend's behavior, ma'am! What can we do you for?"

Mars just looked amused with the argumentative youths. "I was trying to say that you're both right, because you'll reach your destination no matter what path you take. But you're both also wrong, because why hike up this mountain when you can fly over it instead?"

Slightly fearful, Conway looked up at the sky. "In this weather…? It would be just as risky as taking the left path."

"There's no risk with a helicopter, which I happen to have," Mars offered. She had no idea that Conway would have a companion with him, but she had no choice but to improvise. "You boys want a ride?"

"Do you take us for fools?" Paul asked her bluntly. "We don't know you. We're not going to haphazardly run into unknown danger for-"

He was shoved by Conway again. "Oh, have a little faith in mankind for once, Paul!" he urged, grinning back at Mars nervously. "We should be properly introduced, though!"

"Sure thing," Mars said with a sultry voice. "I'm Mars. And you're Conway, aren't you?"

That definitely took both boys by surprise.

"W-wait, you know who I am…?" Conway asked in a squeaky voice. "But… how?"

"Did you just watch the Plumeria Contest or something?" Paul asked much more casually.

"No," Mars responded. "But his cousin did."

Conway was even more surprised by this news. "Sloan watched the Contest after all?!" In a delayed reaction, he realized something else: "You know my cousin Sloan?!"

At first, Mars didn't answer. She never actually knew Saturn's given name, as they were all but forgotten memories in the workplace and were never discussed amongst coworkers. She was more than a little tickled to finally know Saturn's real name, but she held that down as best she could, since she had to pretend she knew this all along.

"He was right; you're quite the cutie when you're flustered," Mars flirted, making eyes at Conway, who definitely noticed the signs. "I'm one of Sloan's coworkers. He really wanted me to meet you, you know."

"I'm Paul in case you were wondering," Paul cut in, clearing his throat purposely.

"That's nice," Mars said, brushing him off and clearly uninterested in the unforeseeable variable in her scheme. "Sloan told me about your Contest victory, Conway. He's very impressed with your work ethic and really liked how you stuck it to your big sister."

Of course, that made Conway smirk. "Glad to know he saw that and liked it, then! I wonder why he didn't call, though…"

"He was so impressed that he sent me for you," Mars explained. "He wants to see you in person to congratulate you. He's also looking for a bit of help."

"Help?" Conway found that to be vague. "You don't mean he wants to hire _me_ as the intern instead of my sister, right?!"

As far as Mars recalled, Saturn seemed to imply as much, but he still wanted the book above all else: Mars knew she couldn't neglect that detail.

"If you help him with this task, he certainly is thinking of hiring you," Mars said in an alluring tone. "I'd be more than happy to escort you."

"Mars is an unusual name to have, come to think of it…" Paul mused.

Simply scoffing at Paul, Mars refocused her sights on Conway, who looked as if he could burst with excitement; winning the Contest, sticking it to his sister, being praised by Sloan… potentially being _hired_ by Sloan? It almost sounded too good to be true, but Conway had no desire to be negative about the prospects.

"Sloan's looking for a rare book on Uxie," Mars told him. "He said you were quite talented in finding and knowing about the rarest books in the region. Think you can help him find it?"

"Help him find it?" Conway said, gasping for breath out of excitement. "I… I have it right here!"

Just as Mars wanted it; Conway dug into his carryon bag and pulled out the book on Uxie that was now legally his. "The Canalave Library actually gave this to me as a gift! He can borrow it whenever he wants! Does this mean I'm hired?"

"Why do you need a book on a Legendary Pokémon so badly?" Paul interrogated, very much not trusting this woman as far as he could throw her. "What kind of work do you do, anyway? Even Conway couldn't tell me that whenever he wouldn't shut up about his cousin."

Mars simply smiled and gestured to the giant "G" on her uniform. "We work for the government, see? We do top-secret investigations. A lot of the work we do is confidential, so I'm afraid I can't say any more than that."

"But I'll get to find out when I get hired!" Conway cheered. "This is _so_ the best day ever!"

"That's right," Mars said, forcing a grin. "So hand over the book and let's be on our way."

"I'd much rather give it to him personally," Conway gushed, hugging the book against his chest. "I really want to make a good first impression on the job!"

By now, Paul couldn't take this anymore. This woman was obviously sketchy in more ways than one, and the way she kept brushing him off in particular told Paul that there was more to this woman than what appeared to be.

"Conway, you're too young to work _period_," Paul argued. "Why would an alleged confidential sector of the government so easily hire a kid? Why couldn't Sloan come in person to meet you?"

"He's a _very_ busy man," Mars assured him. "What are you, jealous?"

"Suspicious," Paul corrected. "You're practically stealing him away with all this sweet-talk. He can't join you anyway because he's obligated to stay with me."

Conway clung to Paul's arm; an act that, if Paul didn't find this situation potentially risky, he would have thrown Conway roughly on the ground by now. "Oh, Paul, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!" he begged. "You know how much I dreamed about this! Why would you want to take it away from me? I mean, you can come with me, and…"

"No, he can't," Mars interrupted. "Sorry, Conway. I didn't expect you'd have a little buddy with you, but due to the nature of our work, we can't let just _anyone_ in."

"Except you're already doing so with him," Paul pointed out. "You found us out here in the middle of nowhere! Do you expect us to believe that was just a coincidence?"

Of course, Mars did this to prevent any interference from civilization itself. However, she was becoming annoyed at the fact that Paul was not at all taken in by her charms. Even more frustrating that Conway completely fell for it, but was being protected by Paul.

"Kid, you're getting on my nerves," Mars grunted, glaring at Paul and not caring at all what his name actually was. "You're a big boy; you can make this trip on your own. Several trainers your age do. But Conway has a date with destiny, and you of all people aren't going to interfere."

Conway was coming off his high at last, being dragged back down to reality: to see his cousin again and truly achieve superiority over his sister, he would have to leave Paul behind. He already gave up the chance to be a Coordinator with relative ease…

… This, however, was a little harder to let go.

Regardless… Conway gulped and finally spoke up. "I can't leave Paul behind," Conway decided. "That isn't the right thing to do. Is there no way to postpone this…?"

"Sloan needs that book right away!" Mars cried out dramatically (and falsely so). "Conway, don't inconvenience him! He just might lose his job…"

The moral woes weighed down on Conway like a tank. Now it wasn't just a matter of keeping Paul company and keeping him safe; Sloan's job was now on the line, too? He had no idea what to decide on now. Either choice was going to hurt someone he cared about.

But eventually, Conway decided on a middle ground.

"Take the book, then," Conway said glumly. "I'm going to stay with Paul, but if all Sloan needs is the book, then I don't have to come along."

It seemed Mars didn't care either way, because she immediately reached for the book that Conway offered her. She was so close to touching it, but then her hand was abruptly smacked away by Paul.

"You _idiot!_" Paul hollered right into Conway's face. "Do you not remember what my father was willing to go through to get that Regigigas book?! Didn't you say this book was rare, too?!"

"Th-the only copy in the Sinnoh region," Conway confirmed. "What's your point?"

As Mars glared at the duo, backing away, Paul matched her glare with his own. "My point is that you can't trust this woman even if she knows your cousin. You don't even know if your cousin has good intentions because he never talks to you! I fought tooth-and-nail to keep a rare book away from my father; I'm not about to let you be so weak, Conway. Can't you see this is a rouse?!"

"You insolent brat!" Mars snapped, unable to control her anger now. "Do I have to fight you to keep you away?!"

"W-wait, don't hurt Paul!" Conway begged, standing in front of him. "He's my friend! Even if he's rude, that's no excuse to fight him!"

"Stay out of this!" Mars sharply told Conway, now shifting her attention on the boy she ignored so much. "He's interfered enough! He's paying the price!"

Paul certainly looked ready to fight, but Conway still desired a truce and was shocked how quickly this sweet, cute woman turned into a temperamental witch. "But… I thought we could be friends!" Conway admitted, still with an ounce of hope in his voice. "Mars, don't do this!"

"We need that book," Mars simply said. "I won't let anything stand in my way!" She tossed out a Pokéball, ready to do battle. "Purugly, show him what you're made of!"

The portly Tiger Cat Pokémon came forth, eager to take out any opponent; human or Pokémon.

However, Paul smirked at the sight. "That's all you've got? I can handle that." He took out his Pokéball… "Torterra, stand by for-"

"Purugly, Iron Tail!" Mars interrupted loudly, not about to let Paul finish up. In a split second, Paul cried out in pain as Purugly knocked out the Pokéball containing Torterra right out of his hand in quite a forceful way.

Paul was in too much pain to respond, grasping his bleeding, and injured hand. Torterra was never properly released, and so the Pokéball simply fell into the deep snow.

"You're actually willing to attack defenseless people with your Pokémon…" Conway acknowledged, now looking almost numb at the sight. "Just to get this book…?"

"It's amazing what we would kill to get," Mars replied snidely. "Now, are you going to hand it over or what?"

Conway looked hard at Mars for a long time before quickly stuffing the book safely under his shirt within his coat. He then glared. "I can see what Paul was talking about… you can't be trusted after all!"

"Then you're my opponent as well," Mars decided, nodding to Purugly.

"You're not getting the better of me!" Conway shouted, determined as he drew out his Pokéball. "Come forth, Slowk-"

"Iron Tail!"

Just like Paul, Conway's hand was struck dead-on with Purugly's lightning-quick attack. Slowking was not released in time, therefore the Pokéball dropped uselessly into the snow. Conway too was reeling in pain with Paul with a severely damaged hand.

Mars just smiled and shook her head. "You kids need to work on how quickly you react to adversity. A weakness like that could cost you your life one day. As if I would waste time _battling_ either of you… I'll just take what I want and leave. Let's see if working out during my break for the past few months amounted to anything… _hah!_"

Coincidentally, Paul and Conway were close and right beside each other, still in a great deal of pain from their hands alone. Even their gloves couldn't endure the Iron Tail attack and it went straight into their skin. Mars saw this positioning, however, as an opportunity screamed to be taken advantage of. She rushed towards the boys; both arms held out at her sides so she could rush past Paul and Conway and club both their heads simultaneously with her surprisingly strong arms.

Both Paul and Conway were hit dead-on, unaware of what she was really going to do. The blows to their head were enough to knock them both to the point where they lost consciousness.

They were sitting ducks now; completely at Mars' mercy. However, Mars never was one to stick around for long, and simply decided to get what she wanted while the "getting" was good. Unfortunately… what she wanted was now deeply lodged within Conway's clothing.

But then Mars realized this was actually ideal: Conway was taken out, therefore could not struggle or attempt to reclaim his book. With the book securely inside his coat, Mars could take both and leave without incident, killing two birds with one stone.

Getting Conway meant Mars stood a good chance of getting a bonus reward from Saturn, and when it was _this_ easy, of course she was going to go for it.

With no trouble whatsoever, Mars secured her targets within her grasp. Both she and her Purugly sped off to the helicopter while Paul was left unconscious in the snow.

It didn't take long for Paul to recover, at least. But he was rather horrified when he came to and realized both Mars and Conway were gone. Mars had even taken the liberty of scattering both of their Pokéballs across the snow, as if to mean to slow Paul down if he were to wake up in time to chase after them.

At the most inappropriate time, it hit Paul what he was actually doing when he scrambled to find his Pokéballs containing Honchkrow and Gliscor; knowing Mars was going to exit via helicopter, Paul knew his only chance at stopping her was via his Flying-typed Pokémon. But more importantly, Paul realized he was actually planning to _rescue_ Conway. After all this time of Conway bailing him out, Paul finally meant to do him the same favor, and his automatic reaction for once was to not treat the situation as if it didn't matter.

Paul couldn't deny it anymore; Conway mattered to him. Much as he said he hated Conway, the truth was that, especially after Conway proved his loyalty twice today, Paul didn't want to lose someone like that to some wicked woman who by all means would do nothing but use and abuse him.

He had to do something; he was too far away from civilization to call upon their help. It was his duty and his alone to rescue his… friend.

After the shock wore away, Paul found the Pokéballs and scrambled to his feet, following the footprints in the snow and banked on the chance that he wasn't too late to save Conway. The weather, suitably, was taking a turn for the worse.

But Paul didn't care; he was getting Conway back no matter what. He would not lose against this wintery weather a second time.

* * *

The captive himself awoke in a much warmer area. It didn't take him long to realize he was no longer outside. He looked around, dazed, acknowledging that he was in some sort of machine that made a lot of noise.

The slight turbulence he was suddenly experiencing due to the outside weather told him he was actually _airborne_.

And it hit him: he was in that fabled helicopter that Mars woman told him about.

"Wha… what is this place?" Conway wondered dully, as he still felt dazed. He had been sitting up the whole time, but backed against a wall. "Wait, where's… where's Paul…?"

"There is no Paul; only Mars," said an extremely seductive voice. Conway turned his head in that direction and was very spooked to see Mars right in front of him, knelt down and invading his private space.

"You…" Conway whispered in a vengeful voice. "What did you do to him?"

Mars smirked. "He's fine. He's not here, but he's fine… but he also doesn't matter, because _you're_ not seeing him again."

Being told such a thing only angered Conway… after all this time, after feeling a real connection, he wasn't about to abandon it. "You're not the one who decides that, no matter how pretty you are!"

That was the opening Mars needed to complete her job. "So," she said, consistently keeping up that sultry tone. "You think I'm cute…"

"That… that doesn't matter!" Conway claimed, shaking his head and obviously a little flustered. He never had a woman so close to him before, and that was quickly becoming more and more of a distraction for him. "You're a terrible person, and that's what matters!"

"If it weren't for that kid, we'd already be good friends, Conway," Mars told him, inching closer and closer towards him. "See, there you go, being flustered again… that's when you're at your cutest."

"You're just using me," Conway acknowledged sadly, now feeling ridiculously stupid for falling for her tricks in the first place. "I want to talk to my cousin."

Mars shook her head, resting both arms against the wall Conway leaned against, allowing her to sink closer towards his face. "You'll see him soon; I promise. We're on our way towards him now. But we've got a little time, you know…"

Now worried, Conway looked up towards her, finding that in spite of what his mind warned him of, he couldn't keep his eyes off this woman now.

"Time for what…?" he asked.

This was it: a perfect opening. He was vulnerable in spite of not having fully fallen for her. Unattractive as he was, Mars kept her eyes on the prize: the pizza. The pizza she yearned for, fought for, stole for… certainly she was willing to manipulate others for it as well, even if the prospect grossed her out.

"This is for the pizza… all that pizza…" Mars whispered to herself, trying to imagine Conway as a giant pizza himself. That didn't exactly work out, but it wasn't for a lack of effort, certainly. Nonetheless, Mars bit the bullet and went for it.

She kissed him.

A single tear slipped from Conway's eye; the initial reaction was that while this was his first kiss… this wasn't how he wanted it. Every night, he yearned for _Dawn_ to be his first kiss. He restrained himself at every opportunity to get a girl otherwise just for the sake of having a chance at Dawn, and now… his dream was shattered.

The grunts who occupied the same room simply looked away and minded their own business; this was nothing out of the ordinary for a Mars mission, after all. Though they were pretty sure she never before roped in someone so young, they were in no position to complain about certain legal matters; Team Galactic in general was illegal.

Mars was a little surprised seeing Conway cry a little in reaction to his first kiss. Still, she smiled at him. "What, didn't you like it?"

"Dawn…" Conway uttered, sounding miserable. "I wanted Dawn to be my first… this isn't fair…"

"I'll be your Dawn," Mars casually offered. "You want to call me Dawn? Call me Dawn. I really don't care."

Conway winced, choking back a sob. "I-it's not that simple…" And in spite of his sorrow, he was feeling weird… a _good_ kind of weird. That only confused the poor teenager more.

"It's easier than you think," Mars told him. "I think you want more…"

Conway both did and _didn't_ at the same time; not like it mattered, because he was getting it anyway. The euphoria stunned Conway, making him unable to fight back. The hopelessness of the situation was also getting to him, as he somehow felt that things might not be so great when he could finally see Sloan after all. Reality was a harsh demon now, but what Mars was giving him was helping him forget that and relax.

By all means, this was a nerd's dream come true; a beautiful woman hovering over him, practically straddling him now, and showering his lips with full, sensual kisses. Conway was unable to truly see this woman as Dawn for his own sanity's sake, so the other option was just to block her out completely. Conway had no energy left to fight his body's desires and hope he could still retain a shred of dignity after this.

He would be shamed to realize he even completely forgot about Paul by the time his resistance faded and he was kissing her back. This sort of pleasure was addictive and Conway was beginning to understand the thrills of the darker side of life. He didn't have to agree with it… but he understood it.

It intrigued him how he gained such a sense of clarity by giving in to his desires and merely kissing a woman. Such rewards made him want more of her, whether she was Dawn or not.

Mars was gradually adjusting to this, though it frustrated her how slow Conway was at picking up the signs and following along. She pressed her body against his, ready to move on to the next step.

The reason for all this? More than just seduction to the side of Team Galactic… that Uxie book was still lodged somewhere underneath Conway's clothes and Mars was determined to have it in her hands. She was awkward about the prospect of undressing him, especially out in the snow and while he was unconscious. She liked getting familiar with her victims, knowing that there's no chance they would turn on her and strike back (thereby ruining her missions) if she could earn their trust and/or adoration through intimacy.

"You're quite the gentleman," Mars told him as she pulled away from him momentarily. "But I think you would like to take this to another level…"

"Another level…" Conway almost sounded brainwashed; he was that overcome by his hormonal reactions.

"That's right," Mars affirmed, unbuttoning his coat. "Another level…"

Conway had a feeling he knew where this was going, and he wasn't sure if this was a good thing or a bad thing. His body was all for it, but his mind and integrity still existed amidst all of his passion. Regardless of that, Mars resumed making out with him after finally unbuttoning his jacket completely, leaving her hands free to explore his clothes. Mars could tell by feeling around that Conway had shoved the book underneath all of his layers of clothing and it rested awkwardly against his chest.

Nervousness was present in Conway's voice when he felt her hands touch his bare skin. "Wait… what are you…?"

"I know what I'm doing," Mars insisted, grinning as she finally felt the book underneath him. Conway was simply too overwhelmed to understand what she was _really_ doing; all he cared about was the irritation between his legs.

Her fingers wrapped around the book, ready to slide it out from underneath Conway's shirt, but found that it wasn't that simple, exactly. Both of Conway's arms had been wrapped around the book protectively. It was his last bastion of sanity at this point; if he gave that book up, there was no going back for him. Mars could sense that last shred of dignity holding that book in place. She was well beyond tired trying to break Conway into the group at her usual pace.

As a professional in this sort of work, Mars knew what else was bothering Conway and decided to "help" him out. Some of the grunts began to look uncomfortable with the associated moaning that now took place. After flinching upon hearing Conway cry out before virtually fainting on the spot, a female grunt was surprised when a certain book was tossed into her hands.

"Mission accomplished," Mars said smugly, quick to stand up and move away from the boy she just tainted with her ways. "Secure that book well until we reach our destination," she ordered, which the grunts collectively agreed to. "Tonight, we're totally having a pizza party."

Just before the other grunts could break out of their formalities to celebrate the occasion, a sudden crashing sound was heard from the other side of the helicopter. It was roughly pushed in another direction, sending everyone crashing into the walls.

"What's going on now?!" Mars cried out.

* * *

Paul was amazed he hadn't collapsed due to asphyxiation yet as long as he had been running, desperate to keep up with the getaway helicopter and the two Pokémon he sent out to trash it. Paul couldn't remember the last time he felt this scorned, but whenever it happened, he played hardball. He didn't care what happened if the helicopter crashed, as long as Conway made it out okay.

Much as he wanted to shout commands, Paul lacked the strength to do so, and he was much too far away from Honchkrow and Gliscor to be heard anyway. He simply had to trust that they knew what they were doing by attacking the helicopter relentlessly.

One Dark Pulse from Honchkrow later, a hole was blown into the helicopter as it struggled to stay in the air. The hatch was blasted open and left the helicopter bare and ready to be torn to bits. Both Gliscor and Honchkrow were too busy attacking the enemy helicopter that neither realized that Conway had been resting very close to where the helicopter was blasted. That did well enough to wake him up, but he was now in grave danger.

"Commander, he's going to fall off!" the female grunt holding the book warned. "We have to…!"

"I've got this!" Mars assured, carefully inching over to the precarious area. "We're not losing our pizza party over a couple of sky rats…! Release the Golbat!!"

The grunts did as commanded, unleashing a hoard of Golbat to combat Gliscor and Honchkrow. Conway was too busy hanging on for dear life to understand what was going on, and Paul's two Pokémon being distracted did not leave him with many options as far as rescue was concerned. He still failed to recognize the helicopter's attackers as Paul's form of a rescue procedure, but as he was dangerously close to falling to his death, this might be understandable.

Conway failed to realize Mars was reaching out for him, trying her best to secure their new Team Galactic crony however she could. The blizzard was rough, the Pokémon were rougher, and the helicopter was too badly damaged to take much more punishment.

"Commander!" shouted the pilot, who was struggling to even stay in his seat, much less control the helicopter. "We have to shake those Pokémon or we're going down…!"

"Then do it already!" Mars ordered. "We'll be lucky to make it back in this shape as it is…!"

The pilot did as he was commanded; the Golbat were recalled and the helicopter swerved right and left viciously to get Honchkrow and Gliscor _off_ the body of the machine; Gliscor especially weighed down the helicopter to the point where it was in danger of hitting treetops.

Still, the plot worked. They were shaken off and the still-swerving body (now losing control) smashed harshly into both Honchkrow and Gliscor, knocking both out and sending them careening into the snowy depths below.

Paul was shocked to see both his Pokémon falling from the sky. He knew they were both doing a great deal of damage by noticing the debris falling around all sides of him as he ran, but he wondered just how good a job they did. The helicopter was still airborne, but highly unstable. Paul recalled both Honchkrow and Gliscor back into their Pokéballs before they hit the ground; it was fortunate he could do that, at least, but now there was nothing he could do for Conway. Paul believed he had failed him.

But that was anything but true; the damage Paul's Pokémon inflicted on the helicopter was too much for Team Galactic to handle alongside Conway. Mars felt herself nearly slip off the edge and clung for dear life as the relief from Gliscor's weight made the helicopter climb up in altitude again. Falling from the height they were at, it would spell instant death for any of them.

A traumatizing ordeal followed by a life-threatening one was simply too much for Conway to handle any longer. He had no idea what was going on and frankly, the stress was becoming too much for him to bear.

Mars gasped as she saw Conway practically give up; she reached out for him, but could go no further herself without risking her life. Helplessly, she watched Conway fall from the sky. The furious blizzard prevented Mars from actually seeing him crash to the ground, but she knew that was not necessary. The rich young man from Veilstone City had no hope of survival.

But there was one thing she didn't count on. That wasn't just Mars not knowing the situation down below, but no one in The Know would have seen this coming:

Paul becoming a hero at the very last second. Seeing Conway falling from the sky, he instinctively ran over to where he was destined to land. Knowing this was a massive risk in itself, Paul sucked it up - his fears, his insecurities, and his skepticism – by becoming the human cushion for Conway's crash-landing.

Of course, the sheer force from Conway's landing did pretty much what Paul expected it would do: crush him. He was pretty sure he heard something in his chest crack upon impact, but he endured the pain and survived.

This was by no means a comfy landing for Conway; body-to-body impact was no laughing matter. He still couldn't register what happened at all, having been rendered nearly catatonic from so many drastic things happening at once. He experienced so many intense highs and lows in this day alone that Conway was certain he would die from that itself, never mind the falling for hundreds of thousands of feet to his imminent demise.

And of all people, Paul saved him.

The rescuer himself found himself coughing up small amounts of blood shortly afterward. He didn't know what this impact did to him, but his pain was nigh unbearable now. Knowing what he did now, registering it… he felt both relieved and angered all at once. At least he knew not to completely blame Conway for this; he came to his senses before he was knocked out and kidnapped. Surely he remained strong on his own and stuck to his word by keeping that Uxie book from that woman…

Paul moved Conway off of his body once he gathered enough strength and promptly shivered as he sat up, hugging himself and trying his hardest to outlast the initial pain. What mattered was that Conway survived, after all…

Conway couldn't bring himself to speak as he used this downtime to calm himself and realize what all happened in such a short amount of time. Fairly injured himself, he rose up and looked to Paul, gaping as he realized why he wasn't a corpse right now.

"P-Paul, you…" Conway started, immediately trailing off as he realized how much his fall injured his friend. Not only had he failed Paul in moral spirit, but he physically harmed him as well.

What Paul wanted to avoid was looking weak in front of Conway. He hated appearing as such in general, but with Conway, who had become a major part of his life now, Paul felt he needed to stay strong in situations like this for both their sakes… even if his ribs were aching terribly. "Don't… look too deeply into this, Conway. In spite of everything, I… I wouldn't just let you die."

"You saved my life," Conway told him, smiling as well as crying. "Just when I lost all hope…"

There were no signs of a crash from the helicopter, Paul noticed. That disappointed him; he wanted to repay Mars back tenfold for what she put him and Conway through. "I should have been able to destroy that thing completely…"

Much as Conway shared those sentiments, he felt the need to express to Paul just how thankful he was by giving him a big hug. Of course, this was the wrong move to make for two obvious reasons, though Paul was too exhausted to shove him off now. Instead, he grumbled discontentedly.

"Paul, I don't care… what matters is that you saved my life! I didn't think you would…" Conway admitted. "I knew there was good in you all along!"

"Conway, uh… mind my ribs," Paul quietly requested. "My chest is…"

Conway backed off instantly upon hearing that, momentarily forgetting how he noticed how injured Paul looked moments earlier. "Oh, gosh! I'm sorry! Paul, if you're really bad off, we need to hurry and get to Squallville so we can get you looked at by a-"

"What's with you?" Paul interrupted. "Don't get all panicky… we should both be fine. I must have been running for miles before I finally got you out of that helicopter… we're going to have to backtrack anyway since that woman scattered our Pokéballs all over the snow. I only had time to get two of mine to chase that woman down."

That woman, Mars…

All of a sudden, Conway sputtered into a crying fit. The past events moments ago were already haunting him, and they could certainly haunt his dreams for years to come. Paul was surprised that Conway would choose that time in particular to emotionally break down, as he hadn't said anything that would normally spur it on. It didn't take long for Paul to guess what triggered this reaction, though…

"Conway, crying isn't going to solve our problem," Paul urged, not exactly being nasty about how he said this. "I know she kidnapped you, but it wasn't for that long. What could have possibly happened in a short amount of time that would-"

Conway's crying got louder. He was losing it.

"Will you calm down already?!" Paul growled at him. "This isn't helping!"

"I-I'm sorry," Conway apologized, sniffling but still in tears. "I… I just can't help it…"

"You're such a baby," Paul said a sigh, finally summoning the strength to stand up on both feet. "Come on. It's starting to get dark."

Yet Conway would not move from his position.

"What are you waiting for?" the impatient Paul complained. "So you were kidnapped! Typical rich-people phobia, right? You lived and we still have the book! All things considered, I think we came out on top!"

The book; the final thing that kept Conway together. What was rightfully his… and what was Paul's symbol of trust for his companion was now in the hands of that woman and he didn't realize it yet. The fact that he brought it up proved to Conway that Paul was very serious about not letting that book be taken away, and in the end, that's exactly what Conway let happen.

Conway's silence was telling enough for Paul. He grasped his forehead, looking away for a moment for that all to sink in. "She took it from you while you were unconscious, didn't she?"

If only it were that simple. Much as Conway wanted to use that excuse, he knew it would do no good to lie to Paul. Eventually, it would bite him back and he would regret it more than anything. Still, he couldn't bring himself to face his friend. "That's… not exactly how it happened…"

"What are you talking about?" Paul inquired, soon getting tired of Conway's antics. He grasped Conway's chin, forcing his elder friend to look him in the eyes, which is what Conway wanted to avoid.

"I…" Conway couldn't form the words in his mouth; that piercing look in Paul's eyes meant he was near his highest level of anger. But what was apparent on Conway was the blush across his face. One would say it was due to the cold, but… Conway's expressions combined with said embarrassment told the story for Paul.

And when Paul realized it, he gasped and immediately let go of Conway, stepping back. He analyzed his companion fully, only just then noticing that Conway's coat had been unbuttoned completely. His shirt underneath was wrinkled… and most notably, his pants were undone. That was the detail that bothered Paul the most, especially after scrutinizing the area and finding stains on his pants.

"_Conway_…" Paul whispered, taking another step back. He was disgusted, abhorred, and most of all disillusioned. He had finally put his trust in this young man… and immediately, it got them both into a cataclysmic mess.

"Th-this isn't what it looks like, Paul!" Conway cried out, now terrified that Paul had found out on his own before Conway could admit the truth. "I hated it! I really, really hated every second of it! There was nothing I could do…!"

"Shut up," Paul darkly ordered him. "Don't talk. In fact… don't bother talking to me ever again, you _traitor_."

Conway was beside himself with guilt, but suddenly found the energy to stand on his own when he realized Paul had started walking off. "Paul, I'm telling you the truth! Do you think I would be crying right now if I liked it?!"

But Paul could not bring himself to respond. Conway lost the book… that trust between them… all for a moment of intimacy that ultimately amounted to nothing. Consorting with the _enemy_, even… Paul felt so stupid for daring to believe in Conway's integrity. The boy was shady from day one, and Paul _still_ fell for it, he thought. He didn't believe he would ever be able to live this down.

"Paul, please don't do this!" Conway begged him, only to be shoved away every time he got too close. "You've got to believe me! I hate myself for losing the book, too! I wanted _Dawn_ to be my first kiss, I swear! I'm never going to get that back! Can't you see this isn't what I wanted?!"

The direction Paul had been walking towards was that fork in the road where they were first accosted by Mars in order to retrieve the rest of his Pokéballs. By now, enough time had passed and enough snow had fallen that the tracks were very hard to make out, making it difficult for Paul to ascertain where they should be. He was completely uninterested in Conway's excuses; however it happened, it happened. That's all he cared about.

"Mars took my first kiss from me!" Conway wailed. "My innocence! My book! Don't make it so that she took you away from me, too! I swear I'll make this up to you… I mean, you saved my life!"

Paul's eyes widened, realizing that. "… Then the debt has been repaid."

That made Conway stop short in his tracks. Thankfully, they were close to where they were originally now, thus Paul stopped as well to dig up his Pokéballs from the snow. "I beg your pardon…?" he asked with a sniffle.

"You started following me around originally because you saved my life," Paul reminded him, finally able to look him in the face now. However, he had never before looked colder. "I've now returned the favor… that means we're even, Conway. You no longer have any reason to follow me."

"What are you talking about?!" Conway cried out in disbelief of what Paul insinuated. "I have _every_ reason to follow you! We're partners; _friends!_ Besides, Reggie asked me to do this and I saved your life twice, you know!"

Neglecting to mention that it was technically his fault that Conway was in danger of losing his life by falling out of the helicopter _his_ Pokémon nearly destroyed, Paul found a loophole. "If you want to get technical about it, I actually saved your life twice today."

"What?!" Conway couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Explain yourself! That's impossible!"

"It's true," Paul insisted. "I saved you from that woman, who very likely would have killed you in the long run. If she was willing to kill me over a book, you know her standards aren't that high when it comes to excuses for taking lives. You turned on her before she kidnapped you, so she would have done you in to keep you quiet. _Then_ I saved your life by cushioning your fall from the helicopter. That makes two saves. We are completely and totally even."

Conway didn't really want to argue (or even talk) about Mars anymore. And he could see where Paul was making his point, but still… "What about Reggie, then?! You're just going to disobey him and go to Snowpoint City alone?!"

"It seems I have no choice," Paul decided. "Though it's not like I haven't disobeyed my brother before. Besides, what can he really do if I ditch you? He's hundreds of miles away from us and has no real power over anything. His word isn't law and you shouldn't treat it as such, Conway."

That was another good point. Conway would just be a hypocrite to judge Paul for mistreating his brother like that; even Paul never insulted his brother on _live national television_.

"Then what about our friendship?" Conway asked him; that was the last of his ammunition, too. The least-reliable one, but still, he felt he had truly gotten through to Paul for good earlier today… "Isn't that worth anything to you?! After everything we've been through, you want to call it quits?!"

Paul gestured to the background behind him. "Unless I'm mistaken, this _is_ a fork in the road. Remember when you said we'd encounter one in our lives when it was time for us to part ways in the future?"

"That was a figure of speech, for goodness' sake!" Conway groaned. He was beyond frustrated that Paul was willing to go such depths to break up the duo. "Now you're just being ridiculous!"

"You're the ridiculous one for ever thinking we were friends in the first place," Paul snapped back. He had now collected the rest of his Pokéballs and was ready to resume his journey… the way he went about it originally: alone. "Now don't follow me. I'd be happy never to see your traitorous, untrustworthy face again. If you try, I won't hesitate blasting you until there's nothing left."

"Paul…" Conway quietly pleaded, falling to his knees. "Think about what you're doing here! Do you even realize what happened to me?! Don't leave me alone…!" He bowed his head and started crying again, resting the palms of his hands on the snowy terrain as his head sunk below his shoulders in shame. "I… I don't think I could take it right now, Paul! I'll do anything you want; just don't _do_ this to me right now!"

Traitor or not, Conway was upset and Paul couldn't ignore this. Paul was only making it worse with such cold and heartless treatment, but at this stage, he couldn't have cared less. The moment his hard-earned trust was compromised, Paul always felt his lowest. _Someone_ was going to pay; Mars had fled the scene… that only left the one who let him down in the first place.

All his life, since that fateful day when Reggie lost against his father at the Battle Pyramid and gave up his life as a trainer, Paul's whole world had been shattered and it never quite recovered afterward. He had finally put his trust in Conway, and almost immediately, he regretted ever doing so… because giving Conway his trust allowed Conway to ruin Paul's world all over again.

Not that Paul was ever going to actually tell Conway this…

"You only have yourself to blame," Paul responded, turning away and walking off. "You did this to yourself. You don't deserve my company and you know it."

"I can't do anything to change your mind…?" Conway asked him, purely desperate. "Nothing at all?"

"The only thing I want you to do is stay away from me," Paul spat, never again looking back at the mess he left behind. "You're dead to me, Conway."

And that statement said it all: as Paul continued to walk his way towards Squallville, nothing Conway said ever reached his former partner again. Conway felt like a ghost to him, now. But there was nothing he could do… nothing he could say to make this right, apparently. Conway knew he wasn't totally innocent in all this, either, but he used every last ounce of his willpower to disallow Mars' influence from sinking into him permanently. Now he wondered if just succumbing to her would have been a less-painful option after all.

… Another blow followed that thought: Conway's cousin apparently arranged for all this to happen. He had to ask himself if Sloan would really care about his grievances. All his life, he idolized his older cousin. Now, Conway felt as if his whole life was a lie.

It was a miracle that Conway had the willpower to gather his Pokéballs, stand up, and start walking opposite the way of Paul. His so-called "perfect day" just turned out to be the worst day of his life.

Meanwhile, Paul was going it alone. He knew he could face whatever dangers the great white north could unleash upon him all along; with or without Conway. From now on, he decided to only look out for himself. He reached Squallville with no further incident plaguing his progress.

No matter what happened from now on, Paul knew in his heart nothing would ever top what happened today.

Unfortunately for him, he had no idea at the time that a certain trio – one that annoyed him to no end – was headed for the same destination. Soon enough, sparks would fly again.

* * *

**( TBC )**


	11. Flying Type Solo!

**( Notes:**

**Just under the two-month mark! And this chapter... is a little boring after what happened last time. Not only is it hard to out-do what happened in Chapter 10, I found that the adaption had some pros and cons to it. The cons were mainly due to the fact that as far as Paul-material is concerned, _Pursuing a Lofty Goal!_ is not up there when it comes to potential. I squeezed in some additional tidbits here and there, but mostly, the script is solid and the same as the dub's, so that part might be pretty boring for you guys (especially since you already know who wins). But...! Hopefully the details I added won't make this a total waste, and there is plenty of original material circling around it to make it flow relatively smoothly. It's going to be much more interesting when it comes time to adapt _A Pyramiding Rage!_ since that one has plenty of holes to stick in new scenes to make it flow well with the story. Unfortunately, that adaption won't be until Chapter 15 at best. Right now, it's time to establish some more original plots and move things along since the big culmination. **

**Might I say I'm rather PO'ed about DP154, which recently confirmed Paul having 8 badges... appearing to get his final one _at Canalave Gym_. Augh. Why do this to me now, anime? But you know, I already have a way around that hole, contrived as it may be. I'm even foreshadowing what will lead to that short and awkward scene in this very chapter. Just so you know, Conway's taking a break from his trauma and skipping out on this chapter, but will return next chapter with his plot going down the toilet just like Paul's currently is. He'll even get his name in the title of Chapter 13, but first, we have to get another quirk of Paul's out of the way. There's also more Team Galactic antics soon to come, so even though this chapter is rather meager compared to the others, I hope you enjoy it! And enjoy your holiday breaks, everybody! )

* * *

  
**

Whenever there was a blizzard about, Route 216 was no place to lose your mode of transportation. It was a harsh lesson for Galactic Commander Mars, but it was a small way of reaping what she sowed. The mission didn't go exactly as planned, but she was fortunate enough to accomplish the most important part of the mission: obtain the extraordinarily rare Uxie book. Saturn, the one who sent her out to get it, explicitly stated that everything was expendable but that book. Now in Team Galactic's possession, Mars was sure to get her secret underground pizza party, at least.

On the downside, she and the small group of grunts that accompanied her were forced to trek through the snow all the way back to headquarters after their helicopter was no longer operational. Mars was far too angry with the inconveniences now to even think about how or why the rogue Honchkrow and Gliscor randomly decided to attack and nearly kill her and the others. All that was on her mind was that delicious, warm pizza that awaited her some amount of miles away… provided Saturn didn't screw anything up, at least. She knew such a celebration went against everything her leader, Cyrus, stood for, but even the ever-dedicated Mars could no longer stand the hunger pangs. For all the work she did, for the sacrifices she made… by god, she knew she deserved all the pizza she wanted.

"Commander, we technically failed our mission, did we not?" one of the male grunts spoke up. "We obtained the book, but lost the boy… in addition to that, we lost quite an expensive helicopter. Are we going to be punished and not receive our pizza after all…?"

The other two grunts cringed and looked away, minding their own business. The one who spoke was somewhat a newer recruit and had this unfortunate incident as his first time working with a Commander in a mission. He was soon to learn that irritating a freezing, determined Mars was a bad idea.

"Oh, we're getting that pizza!" she barked back, glaring at the grunt who asked. "All of this was _Saturn's_ idea, anyway! If anyone's paying for the lost helicopter, it's him! He's the jerk with all the money, anyway!"

"But aren't you below Commander Saturn, in a way?" the grunt stupidly asked. "I mean, I've reviewed all this… he could hold us all liable and cut away our pizza if he had to pay for the helicopter, yes? Not to mention we inadvertently killed his cousin…"

Mars growled, hating being reminded of that. It wasn't for her lack of trying that Conway was lost; he was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. All the same, Mars gave herself a pat on the back for sucking up her pride and working with him quickly to secure the Uxie book. Had she held back, both he _and_ book would have been lost by now. She and the other grunts would have to spend the whole night on that frozen route trying to find a corpse rather than steadily making their way home.

"We didn't kill his dorky cousin!" Mars spat. "It was those two Pokémon! If they hadn't attacked the helicopter, we all would've been back to headquarters by now! And I'm definitely not letting Saturn get the upper-hand on this; it's still his mess and he has to clean it up. So do us all favor and shut it, Eggers."

"It's, uh… Edwin," the grunt nervously corrected. His fellow coworkers were making gestures instructing him to shut his mouth, but he was oblivious to them. "You have to admit they're valid points, Commander. How are you going to break the news to Commander Saturn? He might stop ordering pizza… I mean, there's the option of waiting until he's finished ordering, but the Commander will obviously be wondering of his cousin's whereabouts before then. What kind of excuse can you make?"

In spite of feeling so cold, Mars was quickly reaching her boiling point. "Shut up…"

"You have a plan, right?" Edwin asked her, almost pleadingly. "We aren't all going to get fired, are we?"

"Shut _up_…"

"Because I would hate to miss that pizza part-…"

She couldn't take it anymore. He might as well have been asking her "Are we there yet?" over and over again.

Mars stopped, prompting the grunts to stop; all three of them looked nervous before their higher-up, who turned around and glared at the motor-mouth. She narrowed her eyes. "That's it; you're officially uninvited to the party. You show your face and I'll have security lock you in the dumpster."

She whipped out a pen and a notepad seemingly out of nowhere. "Now, what was your name again?"

Edwin paused before looking to the two coworkers between him. He gulped before finally realizing his situation and wised up. "Eh-… Eggers, ma'am."

Mars smirked and jotted that name down, then turned her back to her grunts and resumed walking. "Alright then, Eggers. You've just been written up for insubordination." She chuckled to herself. "So no pizza for you… now let's get moving! I'm not about to spend the night out here."

Edwin sighed a breath of relief quietly as his coworkers gave him a thumbs up for the quick thinking. The small group continued their way down the route through the night in hopes of reaching their much warmer home base before Saturn started sending out search parties.

* * *

So Paul decided to go it alone after all.

It had only been a few hours since the trainer parted from Conway, whom he had been with every day for nearly a month until this point. Since that fateful encounter on the way to Canalave City, the grump and the geek had been a traveling pair with a fair bit of success since coming together. Even in spite of Paul's mishaps in the form of a severe cold, later followed by a near-brush with death after falling off a cliff and intensive physical rehabilitation, he still ended up with a Mine Badge on his first try. Conway had even greater success, not only earning the Cobble Badge (the first badge he had ever won since becoming a trainer), but the Plumeria Ribbon as well… also a first.

Perhaps it wasn't directly Conway's doing, but Paul even managed to have a personal encounter with his father for the first time in four years – since the day his brother Reggie decided to retire as a trainer after failing to conquer the Kanto Battle Frontier. It had been quite an eventful month, all culminating when Paul would finally reach Snowpoint City, defeat Candice, and earn the Icicle Badge. Then, only one badge remained standing between Paul and the Sinnoh League Conference.

But even without what had just happened to him, Paul wasn't going to make it to Snowpoint City tonight. Very few trainers ever traveled to that location due to its remoteness and high level of inconvenience and potential danger. But those risks were what attracted Paul to that location in the first place. Ever since he was young, Paul was one who enjoyed pushing the envelope. It always helped him feel alive… and that was probably why so many other so-called "normal" activities bored him. If Paul wasn't so well aware that knowledge was another form of power, reading likely would have bored him as well.

Really, Paul had reasons for his superiority complex over most trainers. Not only did he read up on Pokémon battling and Pokémon itself during his free time on a frequent basis, but Paul had absorbed so much of the world's culture and Pokémon experiences through traveling with his brother before starting his own journey. After Andrea passed away and Brandon relocated to Kanto, Reggie had no choice but to take Paul along with him for the rest of his journey until Paul himself was old enough to embark on his own adventure.

Due to this, Paul had already technically experienced the wonders of Kanto, Johto, and Hoenn well before his journey officially started. Since Reggie had almost completed his Sinnoh adventure before his mother's death, Paul hadn't actually fully experienced his own region, ironically enough. But Paul figured he had an edge over many other trainers due to his abundance of exposure at his age, and for the most part, that proved to be true. The Veilstone City trainer was undeniably wise beyond his years, even though he lacked compassion. The truth was, having learned from his past, Paul was extremely goal-oriented. He had no problem following the rules for the most part, but when push came to shove, he would easily do whatever it took to win if he knew he could get away with it.

And now, Paul realized his partnership with Conway had been a mistake all along. He was ashamed of himself for becoming so "weak", but that was hardly his first concern right now. Paul honestly had not been feeling right all day long… even before leaving Plumeria Town.

He had actually passed out without meaning to during the Contest. The one time he actually wanted to watch a battle of Conway's, Paul slept straight through it. Beyond his strange feelings that almost resembled attachment to Conway, the only other oddity in Paul's condition was his fatigue.

It was more understandable at this point; he had practically run a marathon trying to save Conway, and was rewarded with an extremely heavy weight crushing his ribs. He knew one of them had to be cracked or broken; possibly dislodged, even. Paul knew he shouldn't have yelled at Conway; not because it was extremely insensitive, but because it only aggravated his injury. For all this time since parting with his former travel mate, Paul periodically coughed up small amounts of blood. This wasn't normal… and with Honchkrow and Gliscor severely injured during their rampage on Team Galactic's helicopter, Paul knew he had to reach Squallville before even thinking about resting.

The young trainer felt some relief when the temperature seemed to warm up a bit. It was still quite windy, but that only meant Paul was on the right track. He had finally crossed the snowy terrain and reached a rocky mountain path. Feeling weighed down with fatigue as it was, Paul stuffed away his heavy coat into his backpack before continuing on.

Honestly, Paul came very close to ditching the coat. Every time he looked at it, he thought of _Conway_. Conway was the one who purchased it for him, after all. Right now, though… Paul only wanted to settle in and fall into a nice, warm bed.

The sudden, strong gusts of wind did not affect Paul at all while he came to a corner and finally spotted a small settlement nestled between the canyons. He knew this had to be Squallville… at last. With any luck, this would be Paul's last stop until Snowpoint City, and Paul was very eager to get this over with as soon as possible.

It was quite late at night when he entered town. Nobody was out and about and most residences and businesses had their lights out, unavailable until morning. Only the sound of the wind was heard throughout Squallville, and it was music to Paul's ears. He felt a little more at ease when noticing the clouds receding in the sky, letting the moon shine down over him. No nasty weather to worry about, and it was easier to see.

His first stop was the Pokémon Center; open at all hours as always. A Nurse Joy with a tan-colored cross on her hat appeared to be the one running the facility. Business was often slow this time of day, so the nurse smiled and bowed to greet her new visitor.

"Welcome to the Squallville Pokémon Center!" Nurse Joy said with enthusiasm. "How may I help you tonight, sir?"

Paul stiffly approached the front desk and offered her two Pokéballs. "My Gliscor and Honchkrow were injured on the way here."

Nurse Joy nodded, accepting each Pokéball and handing them to her partner, Chansey. The Egg Pokémon, in "uniform" like other Chansey whom belong to a Nurse Joy, went through the motions and carted off the patients. "Your Pokémon are in good hands. Would you like to wait here, or-…"

The young woman paused as she noticed something. "Young man, what happened to your hand?"

That gash… the injury Paul sustained from Mars' Purugly just a short while ago. Paul had almost completely forgotten about it due to the much more painful injuries he suffered afterward. Not wanting to make an issue of this, Paul closed his eyes and looked away, huffing.

"Just a small accident," he said. "It'll heal."

Unconvinced, Nurse Joy shook her head. "It will need to be disinfected and wrapped to do so properly and…" She gasped. "My goodness, did you fall?! Those blood stains on your pants…!"

Paul's mind must have been clouded with fatigue to forget the evidence of his coughing up blood. Most of the stains ended up on the heavy coat which Paul had stashed away, but some of it also hit his pants… and his pants weren't dark enough to completely hide those dark blotches that showed up especially well under the Pokémon Center's fluorescent lighting.

"Only a little," Paul lied, hating to make a big deal out of this. He really just wanted to go to bed already and forget this day ever happened. "I just-…"

And Paul's own body betrayed his desires, as the young man spontaneously started to cough once more. His hand didn't reach his mouth in time, leaving Nurse Joy to witness a nasty gob of redness hit the tiled floor. There was nothing he could say to calm Nurse Joy now. He stared, his eyes looking empty, at the splattered blood while the woman started to panic.

"Oh no…!" she wailed. "And most of the clinics are closed for the night… I'd better call one in…"

"N-no, no," Paul weakly begged. "Just direct me to the nearest hotel, and…"

Nurse Joy shook her head as she approached the nearest phone. "Sit down, young man! I know who to call in these situations, so please be compliant, mister-…" She briefly paused and calmed down, looking to her ailing customer. "I'm sorry; what's your name?"

"Paul," he said with a sigh as he slumped into the closest chair he could find. He had no real way to escape this now that Honchkrow and Gliscor were secured within the center, anyway. Now that his adrenaline rush from earlier had long since dissipated and he reached his destination after hours of walking, Paul felt he could crash then and there. But he knew that would be a bad idea, considering how much this Nurse Joy overreacted just by seeing him injured.

Looking serious, Nurse Joy began dialing for a doctor. "And who is your next of kin, Paul? How can I contact them…?"

Upon receiving no response, the pink-haired nurse found that Paul had lost consciousness.

* * *

"_Your father… your brother…  
… please tell them…"_

With a loud gasp, Paul sat straight up from his slumber, eyes widened. He immediately regretted it. His chest was in a great deal of pain, the bright lights nearly blinded him…

Where was he, anyway?

"Well, aren't _you_ full of surprises," an amused male voice remarked. That tone was way too familiar for comfort as far as Paul was concerned. Forcing himself to adjust to the lighting, he turned to the direction of the voice.

"Conway…?" he whispered in disbelief.

There was a warm chuckle before a response. There were familiar glasses, but the hair was a rusty blue with graying sideburns. It was rather all over the place and the man in question sported a complimenting, short-medium beard. He was quite tall… not exactly muscular, but not flabby and obese, either. Perhaps somewhat portly, but it was no oddity for a man of his apparent age.

"Perhaps it's a coincidence," he muttered quietly to himself before looking back to Paul. "Doctor Dalton, at your service. It seems you've run into a bit of trouble last night, Paul."

"Last night…?" Paul murmured before looking to a nearby window, indeed seeing the sun rising. "Wait, so I'm at…?"

The doctor nodded. "You passed out at the Pokémon Center; Nurse Joy gave me all the details. I came as quickly as I could, and as of right now, you are at Squallville's finest medical facility… well, the only one, really, but it sounds better to call it the finest, don't you think?"

Paul looked down and frowned. He realized he was no longer wearing his regular outfit, but rather a typical thin shirt most in-patients would wear. Was he really that bad off…? "There was no need for all this…"

"On the contrary, things would be much worse for you right now had you not come to our attention," Dalton corrected, wagging a finger. "I don't suppose you remember how or why your hand was injured the way it was, or how you've ended up with a cracked rib?"

Paul's expressions darkened upon hearing the confirmation. Conway's fall cracked one of his ribs. He was coughing up blood ever since. But more than anything… it was that red-headed woman, Mars' fault for the initial assault leading up to that event. Paul wouldn't let himself forget that.

"It doesn't matter," Paul muttered. "Not how it happened or anything… tell me how long it'll take to heal. I'm in a hurry."

"I can tell you this: rushing won't be of any help at all," Dalton advised, though his tone was gentle and soothing. "And really, I would prefer that you stick around for a few days, Paul. In addition to the hand and the ribs, we took your temperature and you've got quite the fever right now."

It was hard for Paul not to grimace at that news. _Again_, he was rendered ill. Never before had Paul run into such bad luck so many consecutive times.

"You showed signs of hallucination in your sleep," Dalton added, going through his notes. "But the biggest concern is the regurgitation of blood."

Now Paul looked worried, just as he slapped his good hand over his mouth after a sudden hiccup. After removing his hand, he was not at all pleased to find it covered in blood. A small amount managed to trickle down the side of his mouth as well.

"This…" Paul struggled to understand his situation. "It's just because of the cracked rib, right?"

"This is why we would like you to rest here for a while," Dalton softly explained. "From the looks of things, you're long overdue for a check-up as it is, but if you cooperate with us, we'll quickly find out what exactly ails you."

That wasn't exactly the answer Paul wanted. "I haven't bothered with check-ups because I've been moving from region to region almost constantly for the last seven years," he brought up, which was an accurate number combining the journey he went on with Reggie that almost immediately segued into his own individual journey that he was still on presently. "And what do you mean you'll find out what's ailing me? It's obviously my rib!"

To that, Dalton somberly shook his head. "Cracked ribs don't cause fevers," he said. "And unless a bone fragment somehow tore its way into your lungs, then it doesn't explain why you're coughing up blood, either. Unfortunately, only pain medication and extreme caution is the cure for your ribs. For everything else, we need to confirm the cause before we can treat you properly."

Paul did assume the cracked rib was the sole cause to his issue with the blood, especially since it only started up moments after Conway fell on him. Obviously, he didn't believe for a second that it was the cause of his fever. Still, he sighed, knowing there was no use fighting this when it would only result in a disadvantage for him. From now on, he wanted to reach Snowpoint City with no further incidents plaguing him. If this was the price he had to pay, Paul was willing to spare what little patience he had.

"There is something I would like to ask you, though," Dalton told his patient, causing the latter to look up and give the doctor his full attention. "When was the last time you had a fever?"

"Uh…" Paul was hesitant to admit the truth, but figured lying wouldn't really get him anywhere. "About two weeks ago."

The doctor's eyebrows rose upon hearing that. "Oh… that recent? Do you recall the time before that, then…?"

Thinking back on it, Paul had gotten sick quite frequently in a short amount of time. It disturbed him to realize that. "Ah… two weeks before that, so… a month ago, roughly."

Dalton paused before saying another word. He jotted down some notes before looking back over to Paul. "I… see. How long were you ill on both occasions?"

"A month ago, I had a fever for…" Paul took a moment to recall the past events. "Four days, I think. After that, the second time… ah, I think it was ten days?"

"_Ten days?_" Dalton sounded almost horrified. "Are there… any specific symptoms you recall that have carried on to this bout?"

The doctor's tone was not the least bit comforting for Paul, but he did as he was asked in spite of his newfound shakiness. "Let's see, ah… mind you, last time I had a number of other problems at the time due to falling off a cliff some ways south of here. So I had hit my head, had hypothermia, frostbite…"

"And that's obviously not the case this time, it seems like…?" Dalton cautiously assumed.

"Of course not!" Paul shuddered to think of going through that again. No matter his reasoning, Paul had gradually come to accept that his initial attempt to start off on this journey up north by himself was foolish and something to be sure not to repeat in the future.

Especially not now; there would be no Conway to bail him out a second time.

Just then, a nurse quietly opened the door and slightly stepped in. It was a woman, but not Nurse Joy this time.

"Doctor, the test results have been printed out," she quietly informed. "Would you like to see them now, or is this a bad time…?"

"Perfect timing, actually," Dalton assured, getting up from his seat. "I'd prefer to go over the readings outside, however."

Paul was alarmed by the implications. "Why can't you read them here? They're not _my_ test results, are they?" And soon, Paul realized what he had just said as Dalton wordlessly walked past him. "Hey…! I didn't authorize you to test me yet! What do you think you're doing?!"

Dalton simply smiled and nodded to Paul. "I'll be back with you in a sec, Paul! Please be patient!"

Before Paul could get another word out, the door was shut. He was now left alone to wonder what was really going on. The doctor's reactions to his answers left the young trainer rather unsettled. But it wasn't long before Paul suffered another incident of blood coming up where it shouldn't normally; that did well enough to distract him as the doctor went over a series of print-outs. His expressions darkened as his eyes skimmed across as certain page.

"Nurse, the highlighter…?" he requested simply, expecting the nurse still nearby to understand. Unsurprisingly, she did and fulfilled said request.

She seemed rather disheartened as she watched Dalton highlight various parts of that certain page. "So, your fears are confirmed…?"

Dalton paused before continuing. "Not _confirmed_ as of yet," he admitted. "But at this rate, there could be a confirmation within the next batch of results. The evidence is growing stronger; there's no way to brush this off as a mere coincidence any longer…"

"Pardon if I'm overstepping my boundaries, but isn't it standard protocol to have the patient's consent before performing these tests?" the nurse asked innocently. "How were you able to do this so early?"

With a tired sigh, Dalton shook his head. "Last night, that kid looked so familiar… upon confirmation of his identity, I realized I worked a case on this kid's family years ago. I was unable to help his mother, who had been sick her entire life. The widowed father went on to become very famous afterwards, and their physical resemblances are uncanny."

"So there is a connection to a past case of yours," the nurse realized. "But if your primary case was the late mother, then why draw conclusions about the child?"

"It's quite simple," Dalton said quietly. "His behavior early on in his life was similar to that of his mother's around the time she was diagnosed decades ago. Even she herself expressed her concerns about this to me confidentially. She was unable to tell whether or not it was definite on her own, but one thing I'll always remember is that she wanted to keep a low profile on that particular investigation at the risk of upsetting the father and older brother."

The nurse nodded in understanding. "But the afflicted son himself…?"

"She said nothing," the doctor sadly informed. "I believe she meant for it to be that way. She had known for a long time then of the severity of her own illness; since she was a child like he is now. If we could confirm the diagnosis, the two of us would have helped him through what would surely become a rough life afterwards. I attempted to maintain contact with the family, but the father seemed to almost completely cut ties with the outside world. My own family had something of a crisis that ate up my attention around that time, and once I finally reached their house, I realized everyone had left. I assumed that… due to the circumstances, knowing who their father became, that both moved to live in the Kanto region with him after the older brother finished with the Sinnoh League. I had no idea the two brothers had been still living in this region the entire time _without_ their father."

"That seems odd," the nurse noted. "That they would choose to remain in Sinnoh and be separated from their father…"

Dalton sighed, apparently agreeing. "If the next test results come out positive, the question as to whether or not that young man inherited his mother's illness will have a definitive answer. At that point… comes the difficult decision when it comes to breaking the news."

"If he and his brother are still living in Sinnoh, that means you should be able to reach the elder one," the nurse pointed out. "Perhaps within their house is the mother's last will and testament… surely that will be the solution in regards to… who to tell."

"That boy is an impatient one," Dalton grumbled. "There's no way I will be able to keep him here long enough to get those results. Perhaps to scan him if it's done today, but he'll certainly try to escape once he's healed up."

"Hm…" The nurse walked over to a nearby billboard, staring at what had been pinned up there before finding what she was looking for. "We can find a way to at least keep him in Squallville for as long as we need."

She handed Dalton the paper. "Show that to him. Perhaps that will keep him around long enough for our test results to come in. We'll contact whoever we can in regards to his mother's will so we'll know who to inform in a worst-case scenario."

The lenses of the doctor's glasses shined as he smiled. "Brilliant. I'll show him right now. Nurse, prepare the machine for the scan. If we can confirm the diagnosis, I'll have another chance to do what others couldn't for four decades… find the cure."

Paul was beginning to hate beds. He'd been confined to them so many times lately that he was frankly quite sick of them. The young trainer was in far too much pain to resort to drastic measures at this point. He settled for doing one of his least-favorite activities: waiting.

The tiny slice of patience was rewarded when Dalton re-entered the room, cheerful and casual as ever. "Still in pain, I take it?"

"Where were you?" Paul spat, quite irate with this doctor. "I never agreed to any sort of test. So I have a cracked rib; big deal. So I have a fever for the third time this month… maybe it's just allergies. The point is, you're going too far."

Dalton shook his head as he started to set up a small tray for Paul. "You have strange symptoms and you're overdue for a check-up; I'm certain your family would be thanking me."

Paul raised an eyebrow at that response. "You talk as if I'm diseased or something."

… And Paul was right on the money about that. Dalton couldn't help but be startled before setting a glass of water with a few small pills beside it for Paul's consumption.

"If you're tired of the chest pain, medication's your only option," the doctor informed Paul, completely ignoring his last statement. "It'll relax you and make the recovery much less miserable. There is one final scan we would like to perform on you before you leave, Paul…"

"Uh, hello? Are you ignoring me on purpose?" Paul interrupted, though he did take his medication. Whether or not it was a trap, the pain was becoming too much for even Paul to bear. Anything that would dampen down that annoyance was welcome for the irritable young man. "I never agreed to any sort of test, and I'm certainly not agreeing to it now!"

"I assure you, this scan is absolutely harmless," Dalton promised. "The problem is that it may take a day or two for the results to become available, and I understand you're in a hurry…"

Paul folded his arms, nodding indignantly. "Yeah, no. I'm not waiting for that. I've had enough delays in my journey as it is; I'm not letting you add on to it."

"You should know that Squallville is hosting a competition soon," the doctor mentioned, handing Paul the flier the nurse had found for him. "From what Nurse Joy told me, your Honchkrow especially seemed to be in rather bad shape when you brought it in last night."

It was hard for Paul to understand what exactly this doctor was getting at, but he sighed and decided to humor him. "You want me to enter the competition while I wait for results on a test I never consented to?"

"Someday soon, I'll explain everything," Dalton promised. "Let's just say I realized how much of a spitting image you are of your father."

Upon hearing that, Paul growled lowly and rolled his eyes. He _hated_ constantly being compared to Brandon.

"And I in fact was your family doctor many years ago before your mother passed on," he continued. "I assumed you all had moved to Kanto afterwards, so your presence here surprises me. But having taken care of your family in the past… let's just say I feel indebted to you. That's why I insist that you comply."

The explanation calmed Paul a bit, now knowing that at least he wasn't in the hands of a total stranger. However… "I don't remember you at all, though."

"You were very young when your mother passed on," Dalton recalled. "The entire family just seemed to disappear in an instant. I've since moved here since those seven years, so it is a rather amusing chance encounter, is it not?"

Suddenly, Paul felt tired. _Very_ tired. It had become apparent that one of the pills Paul had taken was a sedative. Dalton smirked when he received no response, turning around to see Paul had quickly succumbed to the drug. With no further resistance, the doctor was able to quickly proceed with the test that would determine Paul's fate within a couple of days.

* * *

It turned out the competition being held in Squallville was none other than their annual PokéRinger tournament: the sustained high winds in the area made it a perfect aerial arena for Flying-type Pokémon to show of their prowess. For a small dwelling like Squallville, this was touted as a major event and was considered the high point of their tourist season. Paul wouldn't have known it from how empty the town was when he arrived there so late the other night ago, but needless to say he was rather startled by the contrast when he got a proper look at Squallville during the daytime after he was released by the hospital.

For such a humble location, Squallville was abuzz with trainers coming in from all directions of Sinnoh. In spite of his distaste for such crowded atmospheres, Paul was relieved to be outside again, away from the doctors and concerned brother pestering him over the phone (as the Nurse Joy of Plumeria Town was at least kind enough to give Reggie the location of where Paul was next headed). As far as the latter was concerned, however, the call didn't last long. The last thing Paul wanted to talk about was the Plumeria Contest and managed to completely avoid the topic of Conway with a clever lie about him being away shopping.

Paul wasn't sure just how he was going to deal with Reggie if he were to find out what really happened between the former duo. Until such a time, though, Paul had no problem using every lie he could think up to cover his own butt. At the doctor's request (and Paul hated to worry Reggie anyway), Paul completely left out the details of his stay at the hospital. The doctor had his own plans for how to involve Reggie, but Paul was completely unaware of them.

Truly, the only real reason Paul consented to participating in the PokéRinger competition was to get his mind off Conway and the Plumeria Contest that still remained fresh in his mind. Thinking about Snowpoint City only made Paul anxious, which was torture since he was being forced to stay in Squallville until his test results came in. He figured if Honchkrow could lose to Conway that it could easily lose in its scheduled battle with Candice as well, so Paul decided Honchkrow needed all of the relevant training it could get before he reached the Gym. After all, in spite of being Flying-typed, speed was not the Big Boss Pokémon's forte. Due to the nature of the PokéRinger competition, Paul knew this would be adequate training to make up for his few days of downtime at the hospital.

Dalton promised that he would have the results ready by the end of the day, which was conveniently around the time the PokéRinger competition would be wrapping up. Honestly, Paul didn't have his heart in these small-time events, and therefore had nothing to lose by participating. As long as his Pokémon grew stronger and learned something along the way, Paul would be satisfied.

He had heard much gossip about the man who reigned as the PokéRinger champion for the past four years, Provo. Not so much about the man himself, but more about his fiercely competitive Dragonite. The species itself could be a serious adversary in any form of competition, just as most Dragon-types were. Paul knew if he could get his Honchkrow to defeat something like that, he would surely be ready for anything Candice would throw at him. There hadn't been many opportunities to get in much practice, but Paul had participated in such a competition before in other regions… and had come out as the winner, in fact. What mattered was that Honchkrow was fully healed from the wounds sustained from the battle with Team Galactic and was ready to compete.

The festivities were quickly getting underway, meaning Paul only took a scant few minutes to observe his surroundings before taking his seat at the very back of the waiting room with the other competitors. While he was thankful to not be forced into a tense conversation struck up by a chatty stranger, there _was_ a stranger sitting in the front row that had caught Paul's eye. Dark hair, a bold red cap, the navy blue vest and white t-shirt…

Just the sight made Paul feel ill. He had joined this competition to get his mind off a major annoyance in his life, only to be met by another one in his attempt to do so. Paul felt as if he had already lost… had he not taken medication that controlled his coughing, he almost certainly would have vomited blood at this point. He grasped his forehead, trying to resist the sudden bout of dizziness that came about. Paul wasn't even paying attention to the screen everyone else was observing, which featured Rhonda of _Sinnoh Now_ hosting the opening ceremonies. That is, until a shrill voice filled the room and shocked everyone…

"IF YOU DON'T START PAYING ATTENTION, YOU'LL BE SLEEPING ON THE UNEMPLOYMENT LINE!!"

Paul looked up, gawking like everyone else in the room at Rhonda's sudden outburst. This woman was annoying enough to listen to during the weather reports. Right here she was showing some strong signs of bipolarity.

A hushed "Rhonda, we're still rolling tape…" from the camera man was faintly heard, quickly getting the anchorwoman's attention as she stopped harassing Jack, the boom operator who had accidentally dropped the boom on Rhonda's head moments earlier… and this was hardly his first offense. She quickly, almost professionally shook off the mishap and turned around, resuming her duties on the live feed.

"And today's PokéRinger competition will be single elimination!" she continued, trying her best to pretend that little candid camera moment never happened. "The team who wins all their matches is the winner! So let's get this underway!"

The screen switched to a pan shot of the digital scoreboard.

"The Squallville PokéRinger competition's first match is…"

Two images appeared on the screen, featuring the portrait shots of two boys… one very familiar, as Paul resisted his urge to growl in frustration.

"Team Ash versus Team Taylor!"

"Great; first match!" Paul heard Ash happily react, which further grated his nerves. It was quite a downer for Paul to realize his entire plan to move on from his past incident with Conway had been completely ruined by Ash Ketchum, as he knew it was only a matter of time before the two would cross paths again… for the first time since their last meeting near Hearthome City, where their battle resulted in Ash gaining an evolution in Grotle… though Ash still lost miserably. It wasn't long after that day that this whole mess began for Paul… he only wished to be lucky this time and have Ash eliminated early on so that Paul could avoid facing him completely.

Really, he wasn't in the mood even to antagonize the trainer from the Kanto region. The competition was just beginning, and Paul was longing for the end already.

Perhaps Taylor was a competent opponent and would have a Pokémon suitable for beating Ash's, which Paul assumed would be Staravia. He figured that Staravia must be poorly-trained to remain in its middle stage form for this long; after all, Paul knew for a fact that Ash had Staravia as far back as when they first met in Sinnoh… back when it was a Starly that never could have lived up to Paul's high standards.

The grumpy trainer watched both young men leave the waiting room and take their positions. Soon, the screen showed two air balloons slowly ascending towards the sky simultaneously with the coveted ring attached to its own balloon. Paul tensed up, clearly seeing the confident Ash and his Pikachu focused and ready to compete.

"The balloon ring has been released and the PokéRinger contestants are being raised to the official altitude!" Rhonda announced as everything came together to start the first round. Once the balloons reached the desired altitude, Rhonda made it official. "Round one, match one: START!"

Ash was quick to get things underway. "Staravia, I choose you…!"

"Skarmory, let's go!" shouted Taylor, as both competitors threw their Pokéballs into the air and released their partners.

Paul smirked, pleased with Taylor's choice. Skarmory in general were tricky to contend with due to their unique Steel/Flying dual type. Based on what Paul recalled of Staravia's abilities, he knew Ash had his work cut out for him. Perhaps this wouldn't be so bad, and Ash would have to call it quits early…

"GOAL…! And Team Ash moves right along to the second match!"

_Appalling._ It wasn't for lack of trying, but Taylor had been outsmarted by Ash, who used Staravia's speed to quickly claim victory in the first round.

This did not bode well for Paul. But there was still a chance that Ash would lose well before the finals. At least it was a certainty that he wouldn't be facing Ash in _this_ round…

The young trainer and his companion Pikachu disembarked from their balloon, happy as can be.

"Talk about overcomin' the odds, right buddy?" Ash said to Pikachu, who nuzzled him affectionately. "That Skarmory was a tough one… we really owe Squallville's wind helpin' us out at the end there; if that Air Cutter didn't miss, it would've been over for us for sure. We're gonna have to remember that next time around… keep utilizin' Staravia's speed to dodge those attacks! I'm sure we can win this!"

He seemed a bit more humbled than usual, Paul noted… a bit more calm and collected. He could possibly be a viable opponent if he consistently maintained that mentality…

"Alright folks, now it's time for our next match!" Rhonda announced, as the camera panned to the screen again. "Who are our next two teams?"

The first portrait that showed up was an adult man, who looked rather fearsome with his Mohawk and spiked shoulder pads on his vest. The man himself was muscle-bound and his visage alone startled many people… for varying reasons.

"Alright!" Rhonda cried. "This team has won four competitions in the past! They're the unbeatable four-time champions: Team Provo!"

The announcement prompted more vivid cheers from the audience, as Provo was indeed quite the popular man around town for his accomplishments. He stood tall and proud, and fully ready to make this year his fifth consecutive victory. This was the man with the Dragonite… the one Paul made sure to keep his eyes on.

"And competing against them will be… Team Paul!"

It seemed Paul had to step up to the plate a bit earlier than he planned. No matter; he stood up and silently left the waiting room, heading towards the position he was to take. Meanwhile, up in the stands, both Brock and Dawn were watching the match and were equally stunned to see Paul's visage on the screen. Upon hearing the name, Ash stopped dead in his tracks, wondering if he heard that right.

"Huh…?" Ash turned around, gazing at the screen. "It's Paul!" This changed everything for him.

Paul braced himself as he approached Ash, who was still standing there dumbfounded instead of returning to his seat in the waiting room. It seemed they were fated to meet again after all… but Paul just wasn't in the mood to milk it for all it was worth.

Ash turned around to acknowledge Paul as he heard the stiff steps approaching him, looking amused (possibly confused) rather than wary.

"Paul!" Ash enthusiastically greeted as Paul walked right past him. "I had no idea you were entering _this_ competition!"

"Yeah, so what if I am?" Paul shot back, still refusing to truly acknowledge Ash's presence and headed straight for the hot-air balloon. He may be calm and collected, but Ash was still as nosy as ever, it seemed… that was a trait that really grinded Paul's gears.

As usual, Ash was put off by Paul's extremely rude gesture. "Huh…? What if you are?" he muttered to himself, looking displeased as he often did with his so-called rival. "Well, you could've at least said hi!"

Paul honestly wondered why that mattered so much to Ash. Was he that desperate for Paul's attention? He knew Ash was determined to make him believe he was truly a rival worthy of his attention and respect, but so far, Ash failed to impress Paul even remotely. The closest thing that intrigued Paul was Pikachu's ability to use Volt Tackle and nothing more. Perhaps the acquisition of Chimchar was also a factor now… but Paul had long since kept that particular Pokémon out of his life and out of his mind.

He jumped into his balloon as Pikachu expressed its distaste for Paul's attitude in its own way, yet Paul continued to tune it out and prepare his balloon for its imminent ascent. Ash could feel the familiar, burning anger within him once more as he glared at his fellow trainer. He couldn't believe anyone could possibly be this… well, _cold_.

Ash formed a fist, pumping it up to show his determination to win. "Look, Paul! The next time we battle, I'm not gonna lose, y'know!"

A likely story, Paul figured. He continued working on the balloon, trying his best to drown out Ash's speech with… well, anything that could come to his mind, but all that he could think of was that dreaded Conway… it was a lose-lose situation, really.

"Just you wait," Ash grumbled, finally turning around and returning the waiting room. "I'm gonna show you how much stronger we've gotten since last time… you'll see…"

His determination was admirable, at least. But Paul knew it took much more than that to be a competent trainer, and as far as Paul was concerned, Ash was anything but. His complete lack of understanding as to how Grotle changed last time spoke volumes to Paul… that Ash was indeed a lowlife trainer that invested too much in blind faith against the odds. Paul remembered once making that mistake long, long ago… but never again. Paul refused to fall into that disillusioning trap more than once.

* * *

Back in the stands, Dawn and Brock were still aghast upon realizing Paul was indeed present in this competition.

"Whaddya know, Paul's in the competition too," Dawn mumbled unenthusiastically. Her Piplup glumly concurred.

"Knowing him, I would guess he probably enter to raise his Pokémon's level," Brock assumed, calmly assessing the situation.

Dawn looked down as she held Piplup close to her, frowning. "But what kind of Flying-type Pokémon does Paul have?" she wondered. She thought back to the last time the group encountered him, and then remembered the last battle… it hit her just then. "That's right…! Honchkrow!"

The balloons and ring began their ascent as Rhonda kicked off the next round. "Now that both second-match contestants are in their places… START!"

Indeed, Paul proved Dawn right as he threw out his Pokéball. "Honchkrow, stand by for battle!"

"Dragonite, let's go!" Provo shouted, unleashing his mighty beast of a Pokémon… Paul had a tough opponent on his hands for sure.

Back in the training room, Ash was certain to intently watch this battle. "It's Dragonite versus Honchkrow," he acknowledged, knowing this would be quite the explosive clash. He looked on with concern as the match began.

Honchkrow took the initiative, flying towards the ring first.

"And Honchkrow zooms to the ring!" Rhonda shouted out.

"Honchkrow's gotten a headstart, but Dragonite's faster!" Provo proclaimed, not looking worried in the least. He thrust his arm into the air to give out his first command: "Dragonite, Dragon Pulse!"

While Dragonite charged up a bright blue blast of energy, Paul was quick to respond. "Dodge it!"

Speed might not exactly have been Honchkrow's forte, but it was able to successfully dodge the attack with ease. Moments later, Honchkrow snagged the ring and began its descent before Dragonite could even reach the Big Boss Pokémon.

"Get going, and use Fire Punch!" Provo ordered, determined to catch up. Dragonite obeyed the command and rushed at Honchkrow, flames emanating from its left fist.

Again, Paul put Honchkrow's speed to the test. "Dodge it!"

Honchkrow heeded the order, zipping away mere milliseconds away from Dragonite's flaming fist. The ring was still in Honchkrow's possession.

"Dragon Rush, _now!_" Provo cried out, appearing to be annoyed at being unable to land a hit on his opponent thus far. Equally frustrated, Dragonite rushed at Honchkrow once more, coming down like a comet from outer space. The brightly-colored energy surrounding it proved to be a brutal hit as it finally connected against Honchkrow's back. The conflict shocked Honchkrow enough to accidentally lose control of the ring.

"Wow, what a powerful move!" Rhonda marveled as the ring flew across the air. "And a clean hit as well!"

There was an opening, and Provo wasn't about to let it slide past him. "Get it, Dragonite!" he cried out.

Honchkrow was able to recover from the hit in time to heed Paul's next order. "Take back the ring!"

Both Pokémon raced neck-and-neck to claim the ring, but once again, Honchkrow managed to outspeed the Dragon Pokémon and reclaimed the ring. This did not deter Provo, however.

"Alright, use Dragon Rush again!" he exclaimed, prompting Dragonite to charge up to smack into Honchkrow once more. Paul wasn't about to let him catch up again, though; at least battles like this were doing their job in keeping Paul focused on something else completely.

"Sky Attack!" Paul ordered, and thus Honchkrow was also soon glowing with energy in hopes to outspeed Dragonite once more.

"Honchkrow's fast, but my Dragonite's faster!" Provo exclaimed, which made Paul raise an eyebrow. He was certain that Provo had already said that just moments ago, only for Dragonite to be outrun by Honchkrow and proven wrong. Perhaps he was trying to convince himself…?

Just then, Paul felt a change in the direction of the wind current, which distracted him for a bit.

"Huh…?" Paul took a moment to estimate the new direction of the wind, realizing that he could use it to his advantage if he played his cards right. He quickly looked back down to where the action was, getting an idea. "Ride the wind to dodge it!"

It worked. Honchkrow was quickly picked up by an upper draft, momentarily confusing Dragonite well enough for it to be hindered by the same air current, being tossed up beyond its control.

"Wha-…?! What the?!" Provo's surprise was the perfect opening for Paul to wrap this up. Sky Attack finished charging, allowing Honchkrow to slam into Dragonite with an especially brutal hit from the backside. The force was powerful enough to send the Dragon Pokémon careening into the ground, knocking it out.

"And Honchkrow's powerful Sky Attack ends the battle!" Rhonda announced, making the result official. Just to rub salt into the wound, Honchkrow tossed the ring straight to the goal, as if to cement the result for good.

"Goal!" Rhonda hollered. "Team Paul has surprisingly defeated the competition's favorite, Team Provo, and moves on to round two!"

Paul's nonchalant expression appeared on the screen, clearly showing his lack of heart in this competition as a whole. Provo and Dragonite proved to be quite the disappointment for Paul; he expected a much fiercer performance from a consecutive four-time champion.

"Wow, Team Paul did it with one hit!" Dawn marveled, staring up at the screen along with Brock. This was proof enough that Paul was the sheer, dominating force he always had been, and would be a true obstacle for Ash if the two were to clash.

Brock stared on, having deeply analyzed every twist and turn of the battle. "Well, one of Honchkrow's abilities is called Super Luck," he explained to Dawn. "And Paul used it to their advantage, and struck Dragonite's weak spot."

Indeed, that single hit from Sky Attack was of the critical variety. Paul had utilized the power of the wind to strengthen the already-powerful move and let gravity do the rest. It was the best example of one particular saying… the bigger they are, the harder they fall.

While the downtrodden Provo disembarked from the balloon and recalled his Dragonite, Ash looked on from the waiting room… and he appeared to be very worried. After all, it was Honchkrow he battled the last time he and Paul crossed paths… and he could never forget the devastating way Honchkrow defeated Grotle; to the point where Ash's Pokémon had to be sent to the emergency room as quickly as possible.

"Paul's good at this," he muttered, with Pikachu cautiously agreeing. Ash loathed the idea of Staravia suffering the same fate in this competition… never before had Ash been more driven to win this. Not only to prove a point to Paul, but to assure his Pokémon that Paul was not as invincible as he appeared to be.

The irony was that Paul appeared to be anything but invincible once he was back on solid ground. After recalling Honchkrow, he grasped his temples and quickly got out of sight so he could ride out this new wave of pain that coursed through his body. Even though he had been well medicated, Paul never quite felt the same after that Team Galactic incident. He felt even weaker than usual, and briefly Paul wondered if his stay at the hospital had anything to do with it. Who knows what they did to him there…? He was angry enough that they had the gall to sedate him just to be able to perform their latest test… and they were so hush-hush about the whole thing. Paul knew something else had to be going on; he figured most doctors wouldn't freak out this much over a cracked rib and a fever.

Doctor Dalton was due for quite the scolding before Paul left Squallville today; that much was for certain.

"And the next match is… Team Steveland versus Team Jamus!" Rhonda announced, which allowed Paul to take a breather and relax before the next round. Honestly, to the Veilstone trainer, neither of the men on the screen looked to be legitimate future threats.

He took his sweet time returning to the waiting room, being sure to avoid Ash at all costs now. There was nothing Paul had to say for him, anyway… to him, it would all be a waste of time. Even though his match with Provo was relatively short-lived and simple, it took quite a bit out of Paul. The stress, the altitude which he was at, the strong air currents… after what Paul had been through, this was anything but relaxing for the frazzled young man.

Paul was definitely mentally kicking himself for ever letting Conway join him in Canalave City. Since then, it seemed nothing had quite gone right, and Paul's physical conditioned worsened with every passing day.

Almost as if he were in a long, drawn-out process of dying.

* * *

As the competition continued, both Ash and Paul moved up the ranks step-by-step. Though Paul was weakened with his previous mishaps, he had the endurance to pull through it and compete with the strength and fierceness Ash and the others recognized him for.

Paul hated believing in concepts like fate, but had a feeling that he was meant to compete with Ash in the finals here. Why? He wasn't sure. He only knew it was a very odd coincidence that the two crossed paths in a remote location such as this. It showed that Ash too must be on his way to Snowpoint City… though Paul never bothered to ask. It was just a safe assumption, knowing how far up north they were.

Even though Ash could only ever draw with Paul in battle at best, Paul could feel the growing anger emanating from the young man. Perhaps with enough raw anger, he might be an interesting challenge for once, Paul figured. He doubted that time would come in this competition, but perhaps it was another step up towards a proper rivalry between the two.

But honestly, Paul could do without it. He felt he had proved himself superior many times already; what will one more win do but once again reinforce that "fact"?

Surely enough, fate seemed to play a role today…

"Alright, everyone!" Rhonda shouted. "We're coming down to the final round! And our two finalists are…!"

The board showed Ash's portrait, followed by Paul's. "Team Ash and Team Paul…!"

In the stands, Brock and Dawn looked on with hardened stares. Both of them had that gut feeling that it might end this way. Destined to cross paths, indeed…

"So Ash and Paul made it to the finals," Dawn noted, sounding worried. "Amazing…" Her Piplup concurred.

"No doubt this will be a fierce battle," Brock assured. "I had a feeling it would come down to this…"

Dawn nodded, looking uncertain of herself. "Same here," she agreed. "The last time they battled, it ended in a disaster, even though Turtwig evolved to Grotle…"

"Not to mention Ash has yet to properly defeat Paul in battle," Brock mentioned, recalling all of the times they clashed since the journey in Sinnoh began. "It's always been either a loss for Ash or a draw."

"He's gotta be hungry for victory by now," Dawn figured, sounding a little more determined. "I know I would be, against someone like _that_… Ash _has_ to win, Brock!"

The former Gym Leader sighed, looking on to the field. He had paid close attention to Paul ever since the group first encountered him… he was an interesting case, to say the least, but Brock knew there was more to Paul than what there seemed to be. It wasn't surprising that Ash and Dawn seemed unaware of that, but that's what Brock was there for… to pick up on the details and make sense of them. But Paul? He was the equivalent of a Rubik's Cube… not that it deterred Brock, but he knew there was much more about Paul to learn. Until they could completely understand this ominous foe, he would be nigh impossible to beat.

But anything could happen… Brock knew that. He didn't want to give Dawn false hope, but didn't want to depress her, either. He chose his words carefully.

"We'll see what happens," he finally told her. "Ash definitely seems to have the drive and the spirit today… and so far, he's kept a level head. If he keeps that up, he could surprise us."

Brock looked to Dawn, smiling. "We'll cheer him on and let him know we're supporting him every step of the way."

"You bet!" Dawn enthusiastically replied. "With our backup, Ash can't lose!"

Brock could only hope that would be the case. He was tired of seeing Ash down in the dumps after every loss to Paul.

Meanwhile, the two lone remaining competitors were just about ready to board their balloons. But first… Ash felt the need to speak out one last time against the trainer he saw as his rival.

"Paul, let's do this!" Ash challenged, with Pikachu backing him up. Paul turned around to acknowledge Ash, but remained silent.

Time seemed to stand still as the two had their wordless standoff. Yes, it certainly did feel like fate.

But Rhonda was quick to move things along. "So now we're down to the final around! The question is, which team will be crowned our winner?"

Already ascending in their balloons by this point, Ash and Paul continued to glare at each other without exchanging a single word. Paul had to admit that Ash seemed especially focused today… and with good reason. Ash remembered the emotional turmoil he went through when Grotle was needlessly hospitalized. While he accepted his own faults as a trainer for being ignorant to Grotle's changes, Ash found it difficult to forgive Paul for what he had done.

It was time to settle this.

Ash was quick to make the first move, throwing his Pokéball. "Now, Staravia! I choose you…!"

"Honchkrow, stand by for battle!" Paul called out almost at the same time. Both Pokéballs unleashed the Flying-type competitors.

Simultaneously, both made a beeline for the ring, though Staravia seemed to be the faster of the two…

"And Staravia takes the lead!" Rhonda announced just as Staravia snatched the ring.

Ash was thrilled. "Staravia, great!" he cheered, though Paul was determined to cut the victory short.

"Use Sky Attack!" he called out, and within seconds the Big Boss Pokémon was glowing with that strong, familiar energy again; Staravia was the imminent target.

Relatively calm about this threatening move, Ash had an idea. "Staravia, counter with Brave Bird!" he yelled, and promptly the Starling Pokémon built up energy that made it literally seem that it was on fire.

The fire soon dissipated into sparkling blue energy as Staravia reached full power. The powerful flying attacks made an explosive collision, shocking the audience as the smoke obscured much of the air. But Staravia was soon seen falling back, clearly injured by the contact, but was still in possession of the ring. Still, it was sent flying back beyond its control, worrying Ash and Pikachu both.

"Staravia, no!" he cried out, apprehensive when Honchkrow emerged from the smoke looking relatively unscathed.

Paul decided to not let this opportunity go to waste. "Night Slash, go!"

With a single glowing wing, Honchkrow was once again in pursuit of the ailing Staravia, who struggled to regain control of its movement. Ash only hoped Staravia was able to heed his orders in this state.

"Now, dodge it with Quick Attack!" Ash commanded, which Staravia clearly heard and regained its focus. Just before Honchkrow could slam its wing over Staravia's head, the Starling Pokémon flew up and over its much larger opponent. Honchkrow quickly turned around, not even taking a moment to be surprised or dumbfounded by Staravia's sudden dodge.

Ash thought he had a chance here… "Staravia, head for the goal…!"

And so it did, but Honchkrow was in hot pursuit of its opponent, and Paul certainly wasn't letting Ash off that easily.

"Dark Pulse, now!" Paul ordered, which Honchkrow immediately followed. It spewed a beam of dark, purplish energy straight at Staravia, landing a direct (and critical) hit. Finally, the hit was strong enough to force the ring out of Staravia's beak.

"Staravia!!" Ash cried out with concern, but was relieved when Staravia quickly reclaimed the ring. It resumed its path towards the goal, but Honchkrow was still right on Staravia's tail, close enough for another devastating attack to hit.

"And Staravia dives straight for the goal!" Rhonda shouted out. It seemed Staravia had a clean shot at victory, but just then, the wind picked up and changed direction once more. A sudden upper draft forced Staravia back up and away from the goal, startling Ash as well as the crowd.

"And it's another sudden wind gust!" Rhonda needlessly pointed out.

Paul immediately took advantage of the situation… he was quite the opportunist when it came right down to it. "Ride the wind and use Aerial Ace!" he called out. He knew utilizing the wind's power was a very handy tool for his previous victories in this competition. Even though Ash had maintained possession of the ring almost the entire time, Paul remained calm, knowing all would fall into place in his favor if he granted just the slightest bit of patience (much as he hated to do so).

Staravia, still stunned with the upper draft pushing against it, was a sitting duck for Honchkrow's can't-miss attack. It was brutally shot upward after the collision. By this point, Ash too was contending with the upper draft that made it hard for him to concentrate as well. He could see that this was no place for Staravia to be, and in order to win, he would have to get Staravia out of there somehow.

"Hurry, Staravia!" the young trainer urged. "Get out of the wind and head for the goal!"

Easier said than done, really. Staravia did its best to focus, but found it hard to move in just about any direction with a wind as powerful as this consuming it.

Paul too experienced the powerful upper draft from his balloon. Firmly gripping his hands on the edge, he maintained focus on Honchkrow at all times, ignoring the chaos completely. "Use the wind to your advantage with back-to-back Aerial Aces!"

He figured if it worked this well, why not abuse it as long as Staravia was trapped within the wind, rendered helpless? Honchkrow darted upward, charging up and preparing for another brutal impact. Ash was tired of being a slave to the wind, however.

"Dodge it!" he thoughtlessly commanded, forgetting that Aerial Ace was a move that guaranteed a hit. But to everyone's surprise, Staravia was able to use the wind in a unique situation to make Honchkrow _miss_ every attempted hit. Honchkrow really had no more power over the wind than Staravia did, and was unable to maneuver around Staravia within the current.

But it became overconfident, and sadly, by the third go-around, Honchkrow brutally nailed Staravia right where Paul wanted it. The ring was knocked out of Staravia's possession again… and this time, Honchkrow was the one who claimed it.

The birds glared at each other, knowing this was far from over.

Paul had no interest in this developing rivalry, however. "Honchkrow, now head for the goal!" He was ready to wrap this up and get out of town as quickly as possible. Paul certainly wouldn't shed a tear if he never saw this town again; he couldn't imagine who would willingly live here, really…

Honchkrow made a beeline for the goal as the roles were reversed. Now Staravia was the one who did the chasing, and Ash wasn't done with Paul yet; not by a long shot.

"Use Aerial Ace and get that ring back!" Ash shouted, determined and focused once more.

The considerably quicker Staravia whirled around and picked up speed while approaching Honchkrow with a build-up of energy, ready to return the favor.

"Dodge it!" Paul commanded, figuring it could work for him if it could work for Ash. Honchkrow ducked underneath Staravia at the last second, letting the Starling Pokémon zoom straight past it.

Ash was quick to pick up on this and continued his assault. "Use Quick Attack and fly down!" The idea was to use the clever maneuvering to get close enough to Honchkrow to snag that ring back, apparently. Staravia looped around and darted in a zigzag motion toward the opponent.

The two birds did not collide, but that was not Ash's intention in the first place. Staravia simply flew downwards, passing by Honchkrow and was conveniently close enough to snag the ring just like that, giving Staravia the advantage and the homestretch towards victory. It was a big surprise for Honchkrow to be tricked like that, and Ash was ecstatic.

"Awesome!" he cheered. "Now head straight for the goal!"

Following Pikachu's encouraging cries, Staravia did just that; the goal seemed so close now. It was only a matter of time…

"Sky Attack!"

… For Paul's Honchkrow to counter-attack seemingly out of nowhere, landing yet another critical blow on Staravia.

Ash was horrified, watching his Pokémon go down. "Staravia, no!!"

And Paul wasn't done yet. "Night Slash!"

Honchkrow loomed behind the injured and seemingly-unaware Staravia with its glowing wing once more, but Ash wasn't going down so easily.

"Counter it with Quick Attack again!" Ash cried out, hoping Staravia had the strength to keep this up. And luck was on his side today, for Staravia did recover in time to stop itself from falling and suddenly change direction, heading straight for the charging Honchkrow. Perhaps it was Honchkrow's good luck that allowed it to dodge that potential nasty collision; Staravia shot like a bullet past the Big Boss Pokémon. Ash was effectively stunned.

"We're not falling for _that_ twice," Paul said flatly just before Honchkrow caught up with Staravia and slammed it viciously with Night Slash.

Staravia was thrown down straight into the ground, cracking it and skidding off some ways before finally stopping.

It was a tense and stressful battle to even watch, if Brock and Dawn's reactions were evident.

"Wow, Honchkrow dodged Quick Attack," Dawn said breathlessly; her eyes glued to the scene.

"This is not a good thing," Brock told her. "If Quick Attack won't work, Staravia hasn't any other moves that can match Honchkrow's speed."

Staravia was down, but still had the ring. However, Honchkrow loomed over menacingly, and things were not boding well for Ash at all. Even Paul was a bit impressed with Honchkrow's abilities today. He usually relied on Weavile for unbeatable speed; as far as standard Flying-types go, the Honchkrow species was on the lower end of the totem pole as far as speediness was concerned. Perhaps the long road to recovery inspired Honchkrow to put more effort than usual into this match, and for that, Paul was pleased.

Ash's balloon lowered so he could properly communicate with his downed Pokémon. He knew in his heart that Staravia just wasn't done yet in spite of how it looked.

"Show 'em how strong you are, Staravia!" he shouted in desperation. Following Pikachu's cries, Staravia opened an eye and twitched, regaining its ability to move. There wasn't much left in the tank, but Staravia itself knew it couldn't allow itself to quit and let Ash down again. It knew as well as the rest of Ash's Pokémon how badly Paul got to him, especially after a fresh loss. Grotle was completely torn up for failing to win the last battle for Ash, and honestly, Staravia couldn't blame it. The last thing it wanted to see was Ash's hopes and dreams crushed once again by the rude and callous rival.

Said rival also descended on his balloon, leveling with Ash. "Pathetic," he remarked. "Just how can he honestly think _encouragement_ could do a thing?!"

That was something Paul truly hated about Ash; his ridiculous beliefs that included nonsense such as the idea that encouragement and undying faith can help one win in any scenario. Paul felt he knew that better than Ash ever could; after all, he was very familiar with this line of thought. It's the very same that Reggie possessed back then when he was still a trainer, and to a degree, still holds today.

But Paul knew it was a flawed philosophy inside-out. Reggie's loss to Brandon four years ago proved that to him well enough. He honestly didn't care whether or not Ash suffered the same fate later on down the road, but Paul felt tormented by the avocation of it alone. Memories of the past haunted him… it was why Paul didn't like being around Ash for too long. To him, Ash was merely another Reggie who hadn't yet experienced his career-ending defeat… but Paul knew it was imminent. He didn't know or care when, but was certain that was to be Ash's ultimate fate.

And now, Paul was ready to show Ash a preview of that upcoming misery by defeating him once more. "Wrap it up with Sky Attack!"

It seemed to be the end. As Honchkrow charged up, the audience looked on with bated breath.

"Honchkrow mercilessly unleashes Sky Attack on a motionless Staravia!" Rhonda announced in a dramatic tone. "Is this it for Team Ash?!"

Ash growled in frustration upon hearing that, unwilling to let it end this way. Not after what happened last time… Ash was determined to save Staravia from the fate Grotle suffered at the hands of Honchkrow.

"YOU CAN DO IT, STARAVIA!!" Ash screamed out; what was always his last resort in encouraging his Pokémon.

And surprisingly, it worked. Staravia regained its strength and took to the air just before Honchkrow made contact with the severely weakened Pokémon. No one seemed to expect this.

Honchkrow looked up in confusion as Staravia, still with the ring tightly clenched with its beak, flew higher into the air and was suddenly consumed with an unusual, blinding glow.

"Oh man!" This wasn't something Ash planned, but he had an idea of what it might be. Paul stared on silently as the entire audience witnessed a metamorphosis of sorts taking place. Staravia's wings grew significantly larger, as did its tail feathers.

"Is that what I think it is?!" Dawn wondered out loud. Piplup was equally curious.

Brock smiled knowingly. "Staravia's evolving!"

Indeed, the glowing figure of Staravia was transforming into something else entirely. Ash's encouragement gave it the strength to will itself into an evolution. And suddenly, for a very good reason, Paul felt a bit of déjà vu. After all… it was in the middle of a battle when Grotle evolved, and against Honchkrow, no less. Paul was a little amused to see this sort of incident happen once more under his influence.

This was a familiar face for Paul to see once the evolution was complete… after all, his brother possessed one of the same species and it was a very valuable member of his team back in the day: Staraptor.

Ash's Staraptor proudly sailed across the sky as the others marveled at the sight.

"Staravia evolved into Staraptor!" Ash said with awe, taking out his PokéDex to analyze his freshly-evolved Pokémon. The entry reported:

"_Staraptor, the Predator Pokémon. Staraptor has an aggressive temperament, and will bravely detect enemies that are far bigger than itself."_

Staraptor showed off its aggression by growling fiercely at Honchkrow, who it was face-to-face with at this point.

Just because his opponent's Pokémon evolved didn't guarantee a win; Paul knew that very well. He pulled it off once, and knew he could do so again with ease if he just remained focused.

"Just stay calm!" Paul advised, showing nothing but disdain for Ash's achievement. "Night Slash!"

Honchkrow knew to take this seriously; both wings now glowed rather than just one. It charged at Staraptor, but Ash felt rejuvenated with the excitement of Staraptor's long-awaited evolution.

"Staraptor, dodge it now!" he yelled out, which Staraptor followed through with ease. It appeared Staraptor's evolution really upped its overall speed, which would be difficult for the overworked Honchkrow to compensate for. And Honchkrow certainly did put all of its effort into its attack, slashing at the Predator Pokémon repeatedly with all its might, but Staraptor outmatched its foe at every twist and turn.

One brief pause in Staraptor's movements to relish in its apparent victory was cut short when Honchkrow finally landed a hit, knocking the ring clear out of its beak. As it fell, Paul was quick to urge Honchkrow to pick up the slack and finish this match before Staraptor could overwhelm the competition.

"Get that ring!" Paul yelled, now unable to help feeling a bit anxious over this ordeal. It was definitely making his stomach flip-flop, but for now, he had no choice but to endure it.

"Grab that ring before Honchkrow!" Ash followed suit, matching Paul every step of the way now. Both birds rushed for the ring, neck-and-neck. As the two side-glanced at each other, a fight suddenly broke out. Simultaneously while approaching the ring, Honchkrow and Staraptor circled each other, exchanging blows in an attempt to throw the other off track.

It was quite distracting, but Paul figured Honchkrow had the right idea and decided to make Staraptor's defeat a sure thing. "Night Slash!" he ordered in timely fashion, as Honchkrow landed a fierce hit with its foe in close range. The temporary stun Staraptor suffered after gave Honchkrow the time it needed to zip ahead, but it was hot on Honchkrow's tail once it realized what was going on.

Thanks to Staraptor's speed, it wasn't long before the two Pokémon were once again neck-and-neck, and yet another brawl broke out in mid-descent. This time, however, Staraptor was bringing something different to the table: fierce kicks from its legs that landed particularly harshly upon the Big Boss Pokémon. This wasn't something Ash had planned, as he looked on, rather dumbfounded at the new element added to the fight.

The audience too noticed the change, and Dawn was quick to point it out. "Look at that!"

Paul was taken aback by this. "What…?!"

"Staraptor knows Close Combat!" Dawn exclaimed, properly identifying the technique.

"Right!" Brock confirmed. "Close Combat's a Fighting-type move, and it's super-effective against Dark-types like Honchkrow!"

It helped that Close Combat itself was a fiercely powerful move, evident as Staraptor finished up with a devastating right hook from its wing, knocking Honchkrow silly. It fell back, awaiting further orders while Ash gushed at the fact that his Pokémon not only gained an evolution, but also a new move.

"That was so awesome, Staraptor!" Ash congratulated, overjoyed with the results even though the battle was not yet over. "You can use Close Combat!"

He pointed out to the field valiantly, remembering that there was still a ring that needed to be captured and secured into a goal. "Alright! Keep it up and get that ring!"

Staraptor agreed and resumed the battle, flying towards its objective. Paul was quick to react to this, determined to prevent Ash from coming out of this battle with _all_ good news. "Honchkrow, get the ring first!" He was honestly running low on clever ideas at this point, running on pure desperation and refusal to lose to the Pallet Town trainer. He had gone this long undefeated by Ash, and wasn't about to let that streak end here.

But try as it might, even as Honchkrow darted straight for the target, Staraptor easily made it to the ring first and headed its way towards the goal.

"Night Slash!" Paul called out as the chase resumed.

"Dodge it!" Ash instructed, which Staraptor again did with relative ease compared to how it fared against Honchkrow as a Staravia. Staraptor managed to loop around and end up right behind Honchkrow, leaving the latter wide open for an attack. Ash was keen on the details for once and took advantage of this. "Alright, use Brave Bird!"

The very move that Paul's brother taught this Pokémon was working wonders for Staraptor's performance. It was at this point in battle where Brave Bird came in handy, as though it also damaged the user; the end point of the battle usually nullified that drawback.

As Staraptor charged forth, bursting with energy, Paul knew it was wise not to ignore the potential of such a devastating move. "Sky Attack!"

Honchkrow whirled around, enveloped with energy as it came straight towards Staraptor. An explosive collision resulted in their clash, sending the ring out of Staraptor's grasp and way out beyond the range of the explosion. It was heading straight towards the goal, and it was anyone's game now; whoever could recover from that latest crash.

"Get that ring!!" both Paul and Ash cried simultaneously. As a result, Honchkrow and Staraptor burst forth from the smoke, with Honchkrow slightly ahead of the game.

This confused Dawn after seeing Staraptor easily run circles around Honchkrow. "So why is Staraptor lagging behind…?" she wondered.

"It must be from all the damage it took earlier," Brock assumed. "Remember, Brave Bird damages the user as well as the target. Sky Attack doesn't have a drawback like that… With everything that's gone on in this battle, as long as it's been dragged out, Staraptor's probably reached its limit."

"Then Ash and Staraptor are going to…?!" Dawn was too horrified to finish her sentence.

"It's not over yet," Brock calmly reminded her. "But the end is nigh."

Rhonda seemed to notice that as well. "The ring is falling right near the goal! Whichever team grabs the ring first will be our big winner!"

Paul smirked, as it appeared to be obvious that Honchkrow would get it first. Staraptor was simply too tired to keep up at this point, and knew he had it in the bag. For all of the torment he'd gone through in the past month, the thought of putting Ash in his place as the "worthless trainer" he deemed the so-called rival to be was a huge relief. If nothing else, it proved to Paul that he himself remained a competent trainer.

But Ash was _not_ satisfied with this. He was not going to throw in the towel just yet. He felt this was when Paul would get a little preview of his imminent comeuppance. This wasn't a traditional battle and Ash knew that Paul likely wouldn't count this battle regardless of which way it went, but that didn't deter the Kanto trainer from giving it his all. If nothing else, it would prove that Paul was not the invincible trainer he made himself out to be.

"Ah, Staraptor! You can do it!" he yelled. "Get that ring and put it on the goal!!"

It wasn't very much of a specific order, but Staraptor inherently seemed to know just how to win this match. With its last ounces of strength, Staraptor pushed itself right in Honchkrow's personal space, extending a wing past the Big Boss Pokémon. Thanks to the evolution, Staraptor's wings were long enough to smack the ring further away from Honchkrow. The ring went flying as a result.

It flew straight into the goal.

After a moment of silence, a roaring cheer emitted from the audience. The scoreboard confirmed it, and Rhonda did the same seconds later. "GOAL…!! And the winner is Team Ash!"

Upon hearing those words, Paul was overwhelmed with a deep, dark feeling in his gut. The adrenaline rush had worn off and consequently, Paul felt like a wreck. Not that this was a surprise…

After all, he had just _lost_. To _Ash_, of all people.

While time seemed to freeze in that moment of dread for Paul, Ash felt as if he were on top of the world.

"We did it, Staraptor!" Ash cheered. Pikachu called out to it in its congratulatory way before Staraptor flew over to its trainer, overjoyed that it succeeded in pulling off what seemed like a milestone for Ash.

Admittedly, Brock could not have predicted that it would end this way. And neither could Dawn, as she looked up at the winners with admiration. "I thought Staraptor would've used its feet instead of its wing to hit the goal!"

"Leave it to Ash to surprise you every time," Brock remarked, joyous himself that this day would end on a happy note. "I hope he remembers this the next time he and Paul have a traditional battle."

"You're right," Dawn agreed, nodding vigorously. "Paul may have a good strategy, but Ash is the one who surprises everybody!"

But Brock knew Paul would learn from this as well. This would be his warning sign; to step up, or soon face a _real_ defeat by a trainer he despised. Such signs were taken seriously by Paul, if his past loss to Cynthia was any indication.

Honchkrow was already earthbound by the time Paul fully descended upon the balloon. He shook off his discomfort, hardening himself for any potential encounters as a result of his status as a runner-up. Not to mention Paul felt the need to scold Honchkrow for failing him twice in a row.

"We didn't win because your reaction time was too slow," Paul harshly criticized, humbling even the massively egotistical Honchkrow as it bowed its head in apology to its trainer. Paul disregarded it (as he often did) and recalled Honchkrow back into its Pokéball. Once he stored it away, Paul looked up to see Ash, Pikachu, and Staraptor all facing him on the other side of the field.

But with no interest whatsoever to speak with the winners most of all, Paul turned around to walk off before Ash could get a word in edgewise. Ash stared on without saying a thing; judging from Paul's reaction, Ash wasn't quite certain what to make of this victory. Like before, he figured since this wasn't a real battle that Paul would quickly forget this event ever happened. Similar to the Hearthome Tag Battle, Paul did not have his heart in the PokéRinger competition; at least, not until it came down to the wire and Ash was getting the better of him.

However, even Ash figured Paul had no interest in the prizes to be won; the year's worth of Pokémon food and the title of an honorary citizen of Squallville. Neither of those seemed to be up Paul's alley, so Ash assumed the same as Brock: Paul only entered this to strengthen his Honchkrow. Once again, an encounter with Paul brought forth an evolution in Ash's team. Every form of competition held a special place in Ash's heart… and he figured in some way he should be thanking Paul for inadvertently strengthening his team.

In the end, though… Paul was simply a jerk. A jerk that needed to be taken down, Ash believed, by a caring and loving trainer such as himself. To open his eyes and let him see the error of his ways… that was an important goal of Ash's he meant to achieve while he was in the Sinnoh region.

Then, Ash registered the screeches and cheering in his ears. He smiled ruefully, looking to his two Pokémon. This was a time to celebrate, he knew; not behave like Paul would have.

While the closing ceremonies were being set up, Rhonda noticed Paul, the runner-up, leaving the arena entirely. For the entire time since she had been announcing the competition, she couldn't help but feel there was something familiar about that boy. He had a rather striking appearance… always hungry for a potential scoop, Rhonda made a mental note to research that young man. She knew the celebrities of Sinnoh liked to be reclusive, and Squallville was quite definitive of the word.

Did it seem desperate? Yes. But by this point in her career, it was evident that Rhonda had little shame to spare.

* * *

Several citizens across the Sinnoh region watched the live broadcast and were satisfied with the action that was brought by the contestants. As Ash was being handed his certificate and Pokémon food, reactions were being made… some different from others.

In a small settlement called Shelter Town, where the entire area was covered with a thick layer of snow, there were some amused remarks coming from the local diner; a simple establishment of a twenty-four hour, all-day breakfast diner that had been running for decades. The menus remained simple and straightforward throughout the years, and the usual customers were often truckers whom needed a place to recharge their energy to complete a long drive.

He wasn't a trucker, but Brandon surely did more work than anyone else in the diner to get here. Additionally, thanks to his appearance, he blended right in with the crowd. Climbing and scaling the mountains by foot, Brandon inched ever-closer to Snowpoint City. He had been to this small town before, amused that it, unlike other Sinnoh locations, hadn't changed a bit since he last came by. It was a welcome break from his adventure, and surely enough, there were people in the diner who recognized the Pyramid King, crowding around him as if they were attempting to resemble a posse of some sort. Brandon merely grinned and let them have their way. A small television was installed on the ceiling, often showing sports events to entertain the customers. Sure enough, what was just wrapping up was the PokéRinger competition.

Brandon had watched the entire thing. The second he saw his son on the screen, he was glued to his seat.

"Looks like your son didn't win, Brandon," one of the truckers slyly remarked. "He ain't at your level yet, huh?"

Brandon bowed his head, speaking calmly. "He did very well to reach second place, but the kid needs a _lot_ of work. It's no surprise he didn't win… I happen to know the winner as well."

"You do?!" many of them shouted in unison; just as many in disbelief.

"I do," Brandon assured with a nod. "Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town… one of the few trainers who can boast the accomplishment of conquering Kanto's Battle Frontier."

There were gapes all around.

"Yes," he stiffly affirmed. "That means he has defeated even myself in the past. He turned down the opportunity to become a Frontier Brain in favor of pursuing this region's riches and experiences. Can't say I blame the kid, really."

Brandon was very talented in hiding it, but he was rather giddy about seeing his son and Ash collide in battle. Just weeks ago when he was still in Kanto, he expressed an interest of seeing a rivalry between the two. He analyzed their expressions throughout the battle, coming to the conclusion that the two have indeed met before.

It just seemed all too perfect.

"So Brandon, is it true you've got legendary Pokémon on your team?" another trucker asked. "Because you know we wanna see 'em, and if a kid like that can beat you, then maybe you've lost your touch, old-timer!"

The Frontier Brain's eyes narrowed at the suggestion. "You believe that? It sounds like you want to battle me."

"Hecks yeah I wanna battle!" the same trucker shouted. "Don't we, guys?!"

The others hollered in agreement, prompting Brandon to stand up and head for the front door.

"Then let's make it so," Brandon offered, rather generously. He often refused traditional battles from strangers these days, but he felt if some Sinnoh citizens honestly felt that way about him that they must be shown otherwise. "A _triple_ battle. Three of you step up to the plate and send out one of your best Pokémon against three of my best."

There were various reactions to this challenge, most along the lines of "He's crazy!" and variations of the saying. But eventually, three challengers emerged from the crowd, staring straight at Brandon with a strong competitive will.

Brandon nodded to the challengers and stepped outside. Following him was virtually every person in the diner, not about to miss on a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity like this.

Just like it was obvious which three Pokémon Brandon sent out, the outcome of said impromptu battle was also fairly predictable.

In the end, Brandon left Shelter Town with a satisfied smirk on his face. At least one settlement in Sinnoh knew the Pyramid King still had it after all these years.

* * *

Paul was ready to leave Squallville like _yesterday_. He looked up expectantly at Doctor Dalton, wanting the test results and earning his freedom from this secluded village.

Dalton, however, was slightly hesitant about it, and for good reason. But he knew in his heart that this was the best he could do for the young man at this point.

"As promised," he said softly, handing Paul a stapled batch of paper. "It's up to you, what you want to do from here."

Not-so-softly, Paul snatched the paper and carelessly stuffed it in his backpack, much like in the harsh manner that he stored away his father's letter a month ago. "I'm leaving," he said. "And that's that."

"Of course," Dalton consented with a nod. "But you have our number now… if you have any questions…"

The doctor was startled when Paul quickly turned around and left the facility without even as much as a farewell. Once he was out of sight, Dalton turned away and sighed, muttering quietly.

"Oh, Miss Andrea… you were right. He _is_ stubborn like you."

* * *

Route 216 ended with Squallville. From now on, Paul would be reaching Snowpoint City via Route 217. It was bad enough that Paul was leaving Squallville when it was practically sundown already, but he couldn't bear the place a minute longer. He was getting stares from every resident in town now that he made himself so prevalent in the PokéRinger contest. Word got around fast…

So close; Paul was so close to making it completely out of town, but of course, who would he run into but…

"Hey, Paul!"

Paul grunted, stopped, and turned around. The absolute last thing he wanted to do was talk to Ash. Especially after what happened… Paul would sooner take Conway back than be forced into this.

"What'd you think?" Ash eagerly asked him, still with Staraptor right behind him in addition to Pikachu on his shoulder. "Don't you think it's great? The Starly you didn't care for evolved to a Staravia, and now into a powerful Staraptor!"

By then, Brock and Dawn had caught up with Ash. The whole gang was here to annoy Paul, it seemed. He shot forth an unwelcoming glare to all of them, showing the entire group that he simply wasn't in the mood to toy with them today; especially not after he _lost_.

Paul closed his eyes and turned away from the others, only generous enough to give them one remark on the matter, which happened to double as his farewell: "It sure took you long enough."

At least it was a valid statement to make; in Paul's eyes, anyway. Ash had that Pokémon as a Starly since they first met in Sinnoh, which was several months ago. It seemed to quickly move on to the Staravia form, but took an eternity to reach its final form. By comparison, Paul remembered Reggie's Staraptor; the first Pokémon Reggie captured after receiving his Chimchar, which of course was a Starly at first. Paul wasn't with Reggie for most of his Sinnoh journey, but it was somewhere midway into it that Reggie's Staravia became Staraptor. Here near the end part of the journey was Ash's Staravia now only doing the same.

Ash may have reminded Paul of Reggie in many ways, but in other areas, the two were very different. Even in spite of the loss Paul just suffered, he did not consider Ash a competent trainer in the least. Reggie, on the other hand, Paul always saw as competent back in the day… before he gave it up.

As Paul left Ash and the others in the dust while walking briskly towards the main path to Route 217, Ash and the others stared on.

"Long enough…?" Ash muttered, stepping forward after absorbing his rival's scathing remark. "Hold on a minute, Paul…!"

There was no response; Paul merely walked on.

"PAUL!!"

Even at Ash's loudest, he couldn't seem to get Paul's attention. He stepped back to where he was, gritting his teeth in frustration. He was hoping to get more than that before they parted, but had a feeling that was a loaded request for fate to follow through with.

"He hasn't changed," Dawn complained, clearly disappointed. She had different, more unrealistic views on this matter entirely, which wouldn't really surprise anyone.

"Hey, that's Paul for you," Brock said with a defeated, yet lighthearted tone.

Dawn looked ahead towards Ash, very confident. "Well, I know Ash will do great at the next Gym!" she assured. Indeed, they were headed for the very same Gym Paul was: Snowpoint's. There was a great possibility that the two young men would meet again soon.

"You bet, Dawn!" Ash agreed, forming a determined fist. He looked to his fully-evolved Pokémon. "And now we've got Staraptor! Let's keep this up and win at the Snowpoint Gym!"

Staraptor fully agreed. This was a refreshing turnabout for Ash and the gang. Even if Paul refused to change in spite of a technical loss in a match, Ash wouldn't declare his victory was for naught. He wanted it for himself just as much as he wanted to prove a point to Paul; and that was where Paul fell short. One competitor put his heart into the fight while the other didn't.

That other, Paul, was saving his heart for a battle that actually mattered to him. As he hiked his way through the mountainous range towards Snowpoint City, soon coming back into the frosty tundra, Paul could feel that his father was somewhere nearby. And he remembered the short and sour words he shared with Brandon just before he departed from Veilstone City:

"_It's going to be soon. We're basically going the same way. You for Regigigas; myself for a Gym Battle. It's inevitable. But I'll be coming prepared. Don't be surprised when I completely annihilate you."_

He wasn't just coming up all this way through a dangerous, freezing mountain range to defeat Candice the Gym Leader. Paul had a score to settle with his old man, and he knew he wasn't ready yet if he was able to lose to somebody like Ash.

Paul claimed he would be prepared. Now he actually had to reach that point.

He suddenly stopped, growling as something had just then hit him:

If he had just kept Conway with him for a few more days, he would have been rid of him easily. Dawn was surely there along with Brock, and Conway would have instantly agreed to part with Paul from there. If only he were a little more accepting… perhaps Paul wouldn't have been trapped in that poor excuse for a hospital, either.

Additionally… Honchkrow had learned the move Sucker Punch at the Plumeria Contest. Paul forbade Honchkrow from using that move ever again, wanting to remove all reminders of Conway from himself and his team. A move like that could have won Paul the competition, as the move was similar in execution to the way Ash used his Staraptor to win the match. Pushing the ring away constantly would have given Paul such an edge…

Paul honestly felt he was being toyed with at this point. He wasn't sure which stay was worse for him; Plumeria Town's or Squallville's. Either way, he was dead-set headed for Snowpoint City next. He didn't care if he was forced to camp out in the snow; he didn't want to know what horrors would await him in the next town in between.

Much as he wanted to brush off that minor loss against Ash, Paul couldn't help but wonder… was he on a losing streak now, if he counted the Plumeria Contest?

Paul's natural response at this point would be "_What_ contest?" As far as he was concerned, it didn't happen… and neither did today, for that matter.

Surely, surely… it couldn't get worse from here.

And yet, in so many ways… it would, and not necessarily just for Paul.

* * *

**( TBC )**


	12. Yippee Kiai Yay!

**(Notes:**

**Well, this took a bit longer to get out than I expected, but I had some very dire real-life things to address during the month of January. Most notably, the passing of my cat whom I've loved and raised for 15 1/2 years. This was something that had me mentally unstable, and even now, three weeks after his death, I still think I'm in a grieving stage. So if anything in this chapter seems off to you, chalk it up to that trauma. While I'm on that topic, I should mention that my cat visited me almost exactly a year ago for a few months to ride out the winter. We raised him as both indoor/outdoor and couldn't give him that life when my family moved, so he'd been living with my grandmother. I still got to visit him, but it was especially nice getting to spend 3 months with him. Most notably, he was right there with me the moment I decided I would make this fanfic more than a one-shot last year. Many times he laid on my lap while I wrote out the early chapters (which was actually sort of difficult to do), so this chapter and the story as a whole is dedicated to the loving memory of my cat. I can't say I couldn't have done this without him, but he was the closest thing to a sibling I ever had... and as you know already, the sibling element is a strong one in this story.**

**In regards to the fic itself... this one's really not much longer than the last chapter, but it's quite eventful. Conway is back and better than ever, and yes, before you ask, I DO have my own way of getting through this loophole of "Paul meeting Candice for the first time in DP127" while this chapter's events occur approximately between DP119 through DP123 (basically, through the Sandalstraw Contest). Things are really going to get heated up next chapter, the chapter after that will probably be glorified filler, and then there's finally the adaption of "A Pyramiding Rage!" to look forward to. I'm not sure if these slightly shorter fic lengths are better or worse considering I'm still making you guys wait two months per chapter, but feel free to throw in your thoughts there as well. **

**Lastly, I've been nominated in three categories so far in Serebii's 2009 Fanfiction Awards (Best Chaptered Fic, Best Expansion of Canon, and Best Supporting Character... which would be Conway, oh gee), so if you think this fic is worth any of that glory, be sure to vote once it's actually time to vote! Heck, there's still time to nominate me for more crap. That'd be even more awesome, because I really have no idea what sort of competition I'd be going up against. Anyway, time to stop blabbering, enjoy the chapter! And woohoo, the story overall has broken 200k words as of this chapter!)

* * *

  
**

"Wh-what…? My brother left town already?"

No matter how many times it happened (and it happened fairly often), Reggie never ceased to be surprised whenever his brother left town without giving him a proper farewell over the phone. It might have been more like the fact that this was the second consecutive time in which Paul left town without a single parting word when he was usually getting much better at it since he partnered up with Conway. Of course, Reggie still had no idea that the two were separated as of now…

Sympathetically, the Nurse Joy conversing with him on the video phone nodded in affirmation. This was the same Nurse Joy from Squallville's Pokémon Center whom had been given word by Paul himself to send his parting words in his place.

"He said he would definitely call you once he reached Snowpoint City," Nurse Joy reported, trying to look and sound hopeful for Reggie's sake. "And considering the fact that Snowpoint City is close to Squallville… I would say your brother will be contacting you sooner than you'd expect."

Still slightly apprehensive, Reggie nodded to the kindly nurse and looked to the box he had received over the transmitter. "I'm sure he'll be training extensively before he takes on the Gym challenge…"

"But he still remembered your birthday," Nurse Joy pointed out, smiling. "Even if it isn't until tomorrow, that's proof enough that he cares, isn't it?"

"It certainly is," Reggie agreed, unable to help but smile back. "Thank you, Nurse Joy. I apologize if he's given you any trouble…"

Nurse Joy had already been told ahead of time to keep the business with Doctor Dalton confidential while the case was under investigation; the doctor himself decided that he would call up Reggie to discuss the matter. Knowing this, Nurse Joy tried her best not to look nervous, as she remembered witnessing Paul's turn for the worse in his condition a few days ago.

"None at all! He was a courteous young man," Nurse Joy replied with a forced laugh. "At least he was able to give you a gift despite being so far away from home."

"True," Reggie considered. "I really do appreciate this… thank you for sending along the message."

The nurse nodded. "Have a happy birthday tomorrow, Reggie."

Reggie thanked Nurse Joy and ended the call, letting out a small sigh as he again looked to the package that was delivered to him.

"Paul, something's going on, isn't there…" he murmured to himself, overwhelmed with the possible explanations behind his brother's odd behavior. Just thinking about it made Reggie too anxious to open his gift yet.

"What's with the box, Reggie?" Maylene, suddenly entering the room, asked. It quickly caught her eye even though she was completely exhausted after facing so many challengers that day.

Always happy to have company, especially in times when Reggie was feeling under the weather, he immediately smiled to his guest. "It's from Paul! He went out of his way to make sure his present got to me in time for my birthday even though he's so busy."

"B-birthday…?!" Maylene immediately squeaked, stepping back a bit and becoming flustered. She vaguely recalled weeks ago when Brandon visited Veilstone City and mentioned Reggie's upcoming birthday, which she completely forgot about. "Oh my gosh, I…!"

Naturally, it was humiliating for Maylene to forget about Reggie's birthday of all things. After all, she had become quite smitten with him thanks to the abundance of time they spent together.

Reggie continued to smile, appearing to be aware of Maylene's folly but was unfazed by it. He shook his head at her, speaking gently. "You don't need to get me anything, Maylene. You've already made a difference here in my time of need over the past month. I'd feel greedy to ask you…"

"D-don't even say that!" Maylene sputtered. "I have to get you something! I-I mean, when's your birthday…?!"

"Tomorrow…" Reggie innocently replied, not quite sure why this bothered Maylene so much. "But really, Maylene…"

"Reggie, Paul's not even going to be here to celebrate it with you!" Maylene pointed out. "I've been keeping you company all this time, so I should do something. Anything…"

She seemed determined, and Reggie always liked that about Maylene. Her passion for everything she did, be it Pokémon battling or being there for a friend, knew no limit. "If you really want to, then I'd feel bad to force you to do nothing," Reggie admitted. "At the same time, I'd hate to trouble you since my birthday is tomorrow…"

And therefore not much time to think of an adequate gift for the young man. Maylene was stumped, not even certain whether to keep the gift completely platonic or possibly use this chance to give Reggie a solid hint about her feelings for him. But was that appropriate at all? Maylene didn't know…

"Aren't you going to open Paul's gift?" she asked Reggie, biding her time.

Reggie smirked down at the box and shook his head. "It's not my birthday yet, right? I'll open it tomorrow. I'll wait towards the end of the day… Paul and Conway should hopefully have reached Snowpoint City by then and I'll be able to call him to thank him for the gift." He looked up to Maylene. "And that buys you extra time to figure out what you want to get for me, if you really insist on doing that."

"Knowing Paul, he'll just scold you for calling him rather than training for your upcoming match," Maylene figured, feeling dreadful for the tons of pressure Reggie was undeniably under because of his brother and father. "He doesn't strike me as the type who would even take a break on his own birthday…"

"Well, you're right," Reggie admitted. "In past years, he's even cut off our long-distance calls on his birthday if he was in the middle of training. He'd be very disappointed to know how little progress I've made since he left…"

That wasn't to say Reggie wasn't taking his training seriously or was not being consistent with it, but by allowing himself to get distracted with things like watching his little brother compete in a Contest, Reggie knew Paul would not be impressed. He didn't forget what Paul had said to him back when Brandon's challenge was first issued…

"_I don't care if it means you have to miss seeing me in the Conference; you need intensive training more than I need moral support."_

"Give yourself more credit," Maylene urged. "I think you've been doing a great job so far. Of course you're not going to be ready for Brandon overnight… but you know from experience now not to overdo it the way your brother does, right?"

That brought back less-than-pleasant memories… back when Reggie crumbled under the pressure and nearly lost his life as a result. It was a dark time, but Reggie learned from it. And at least this time… he wasn't alone.

"Of course," Reggie assured. "I'll find my own battling style… I couldn't do it four years ago, but this time I won't leave this business unfinished. It's just going to be tough… and it'll take a lot of time. I shouldn't use my birthday as an excuse to slack off. I _need_ to get back up to speed… once I'm fully adjusted back to the level I was before I retired, the progress will really start showing."

"So… you're going to spend your birthday training?" Maylene glumly assumed. "What a sacrifice…"

Reggie simply smiled and shrugged. "So I'm turning eighteen… that's not such a big deal. If anything, it shows that since I've reached adulthood that I should start behaving like one. Part of being an adult is making sacrifices for the greater good, even on your birthday…"

Maylene _wanted_ to tell Reggie that he was already a master in the art of self-sacrifice ever since he took up raising Paul at the age of ten, but had no desire to dredge up those old memories for her friend. "I'd still like to give you a present. Even if you insist on training for your birthday…"

"I appreciate it, Maylene," Reggie thanked, staring out the window as day began to fade into night. "All I really want is a way to become stronger more quickly… but anything you'll get me should be fine."

Sighing, seeing the hopelessness of getting Reggie to truly think of his own real needs, Maylene started to trudge out of the room before she stopped short, realizing something. "That's it…"

Overhearing her, Reggie turned his attention to the Gym Leader. "That's what?"

"What your birthday gift is going to be!" Maylene exclaimed, suddenly excited. "Come on; follow me!"

She dashed outside, prompting Reggie to follow, though he was in no hurry himself. He couldn't begin to imagine what was going on in that girl's mind.

Outside in the back, Maylene's Lucario, Machoke, and Meditite were all relaxing after a hard day of consecutive Gym Battles and enjoying the dinner Reggie specially conjured up just for them. They didn't expect to see Maylene back this soon since they hadn't finished their meal, but the determined look on her face told them all that she was out here for a reason.

"You've all done a great job adapting to the new environment while the Veilstone Gym's been undergoing renovations, guys," Maylene congratulated. "I know it's been a hard day, so I want you all to get a good night's rest early, because the real challenge has yet to come, and you won't be able to pull it off alone!"

"Maylene, what are you going on about…?" Reggie wondered, stepping outside and looking equally as confused as Maylene's Pokémon. "What challenge?"

Fully confident, Maylene turned to Reggie and grinned. "You said more than anything else, you wanted to get stronger so that you'll be ready to face Brandon in a proper battle," she reminded him. "So I'm going to help get you there. You can only accomplish certain things by training on your own… so tomorrow, get ready! I'm taking the day off from Gym challenges and challenging _you_ to a six-on-six battle with me!"

Reggie blinked. "Say what now…?"

Maylene smirked and took out three extra Pokéballs out from her pocket. "Come out, all of you!" she shouted, tossing them all into the air. Simultaneously, the second half of Maylene's team appeared right by her side: Hitmontop, Breloom, and Primeape.

Lucario, Machoke, and Meditite stood alongside the less commonly-seen half of the core team and their trainer. Maylene pointed directly at Reggie, showing him her true fighting spirit at its full potential.

"Reggie, as your birthday present, I challenge you and your entire team to a full battle!" she announced. "We'll choose the perfect battleground and give it our all! The battle's not going to end until one side has all six Pokémon unable to battle."

Of course, Reggie was beyond humbled to realize the opportunity he had been given. "Maylene, there's no need to go all out like that," he gently said. "I'm so rusty that I probably won't stand a chance against you…"

"That's not the attitude to have!" Maylene scolded, shaking her head. "Because if you can't beat me, you won't be able to beat Brandon, either! This battle ought to give you an idea of how much progress you've made over the past few weeks, Reggie. Please accept my challenge."

She had a point. Reggie very much needed to get a clear idea of how close he was to reaching his previous peak and schedule out his more advanced training from there. He knew that when she was fired up like this, Maylene could be an especially fierce Gym Leader. She had come a long way from first starting out in the position less than a year ago. If he could defeat Maylene, Reggie would be able to say with certainty that he has been taking his training seriously, even if he wasn't as consistent with it as Paul usually was.

Reggie finally smiled, extending his arm to Maylene for a handshake. "When you put it like that, it's pretty much an offer I can't refuse," he admitted. "I accept your challenge… can't wait to see how we stack up against each other."

At least Maylene was able to resist the urge to blush at Reggie's compliments and proudly shook his hand. Above all else, she wanted to carry herself the way a professional would. "Great. Then I suggest we all turn in early for tonight. I have a feeling our battle is going to be a long one… it'll be the present that keeps on giving."

More than anything, Reggie was just thankful to not have to spend his eighteenth birthday alone, unlike several of his past birthdays. He understood how impossible it was to ever set up a true reunion between himself and the remains of his family (the incident a few weeks ago truly was a fluke), but having Maylene around made it hard for even Reggie to feel any pain.

"Perfect opportunity to see how well dad's presents have enhanced my Pokémon's performance," Reggie mentioned. "This was a great idea, Maylene. Thank you."

To see that content, relieved expression on Reggie's face… Maylene knew she had made the right decision. She was so happy that she hadn't caved in and tried to use this day as a cheap opportunity to confess her feelings for him. It made her feel stronger to know there was no need to rush into that sort of thing… because right now, there were so many more important things on task, and for Reggie, the last thing he needed was a complicated love life before facing Brandon.

As Reggie gradually became a stronger trainer once more, Maylene too felt strong in more ways than one. Together, they watched the sun set on Reggie's final day of being a minor. Things were going to change from now on, but this time, they were changing in a good way.

* * *

It had been a brutal ordeal to walk all the way back to Headquarters, but Galactic Commander Mars was rewarded with the pizza party as promised by Saturn; the following days were rather hectic, trying to keep this away from the watchful eye of Cyrus, but the effort was worth it, as it wasn't just Mars who was tired of the detestable energy drinks as the sole form of sustenance at Galactic Headquarters.

Saturn had been so busy covering up the underground pizza party that he hardly had time to harass Mars over how her mission went and why an entire helicopter was lost during the entire operation. His primary concern was confirming that Mars retrieved the book, which she did successfully, hence why Saturn went along with the party. His coworker's success combined with keeping Cyrus pleased and unaware of the activities at the lowest level of the building prevented Saturn from even remembering he had ordered Mars to seize his youngest cousin as well. Saturn had expected Conway to have tracked him down by now and irritate him to no end as he usually did in the past. The fact that he hadn't made as much as a peep reminded Saturn that Mars never actually returned with Conway… nor did she make any mention of his unfortunate "demise". The smell of pizza immediately distracted Mars and her coworkers and they rushed towards the party just as soon as Mars gave Saturn the book.

A small window of time allowed Saturn to monitor the party and track down Mars so that she would be forced to give out the rest of her report. Conway probably loved pizza as much as the next kid, Saturn figured, but this was ridiculous for him to go this long without seeing his cousin. It was high time Saturn got some answers.

Saturn used his break period to travel to the building's bottom floor and find Mars through the mess of the pizza party that had been going on for a few days solid. Personally, the top commander was surprised that Cyrus _hadn't_ found out about their activities yet. To avoid to be associated with the festivities, Saturn kept himself as far away from the party as he could, but knew Mars was not the type who would leave this environment so easily.

It was no surprise for Saturn to see a mass of Galactic grunts enjoying the pizza bought with his hard-earned money. This was where the uniforms (especially the sea green wigs) came in handy, as Mars stuck out like a sore thumb amongst the crowd with her spiked up crimson hair. This was not exactly her proudest moment, as she was in a pizza-induced food coma and as such, passed out over a table; drool hanging from her mouth and all. It appeared that she had just recently eaten an entire large pizza all by herself, but this again did not catch Saturn by surprise. Mars always had issues with self-restraint, after all.

Easily ignoring the other festivities, Saturn made his way over to the table and sat down across from Mars, pounding his fist on the table right in front of her to jolt the young woman back into consciousness.

Mars groaned and opened her eyes slightly, blinking before registering where she was. Upon seeing her fellow higher-up, Mars was quickly jolted out of her slumber and stood stiffly before him. "S-Saturn, what are you doing here?!" she barked out. "You're supposed to be on Cyrus patrol!"

"It's my lunch break; someone is covering for me," Saturn calmly explained whilst looking disgusted with this party in general.

"What, _now_ mister high-and-mighty wants a slice of the success?" Mars mused, smirking. "I thought you despised greasy food. That's what you said, remember?"

"Contrary to your belief, that's not why I'm here," Saturn denied, snobbish as ever. "It just occurred to me, Mars, that you have failed to file a full report on your mission."

Mars grumbled, hating to have her party dumped on by a wet blanket like Saturn. "I gave you the book, didn't I? Can't we skip the stupid paperwork just this one time? You know that'll just make Cyrus interrogate us if he finds it."

"That isn't what I mean and you know it," Saturn accused, glaring at her. "I instructed you to retrieve my cousin along with the book. While I am pleased to have the book, you made no mention of Conway when you first came by. Did it just slip your mind to take him and then completely forget to tell me about this rather important detail?"

The mention of that boy made Mars freeze up as she realized she had completely forgotten to tell Saturn about that. She was so cold and hungry from the forced walk back to headquarters that she had no desire to stick around Saturn for long; she craved her reward. Now that she engorged herself on said reward, Mars found that there was no real way out of explaining this.

"Or perhaps you didn't forget," Saturn mused, narrowing his eyes. "He wouldn't happen to be the reason why you lost your helicopter during the mission, would it?"

"Uh, about that…" Mars stammered, unsure of how to put this delicately. "I did see him, and I had to use every nasty trick in the book to get what you wanted from him, so I definitely earned this party whether you agree with me or not!"

Saturn stiffly shook his head. It was merciful of him to even grant Mars this party when she apparently only achieved the bare minimum of their objective for that secret mission. "Tell me where he is. I don't recall seeing him with you and the group of grunts you took with you to the mission. Perhaps I should have noticed something was off right then and there…"

"But you were too into that book to even notice," Mars shot back, smirking. "Guess you were telling the truth; your cousin _was_ expendable."

What Mars insinuated made Saturn's eyes widen as he stared directly at her. "Mars, I said he was expendable if there was no way to bring him here; not to kill him recklessly!"

"You're not letting me finish," Mars grumbled, looking to the side. "Even I'm not sure why things went the way they did back there… I had both your dorky cousin _and_ the book in our possession. And you were right… that weakness for women made him an easy one to succumb to my demands. But on our way back, a blizzard kicked up and out of nowhere, a Honchkrow and Gliscor attacked our helicopter."

"Honchkrow and Gliscor?" Saturn wondered out loud, finding this hard to buy. "Neither species are native to the far north of Sinnoh."

Helplessly, Mars shrugged at him. "Ask the three grunts who were with me; I know what I saw. Those two practically tore the helicopter apart, and it was our good luck that we managed to make our landing and survive. Simply put, your cousin wasn't so lucky."

Saturn was at a loss for words, only able to stare again at his coworker in disbelief.

"I did what I could to save him, but the helicopter was in such bad shape that I couldn't reach him," Mars explained. "I used the Golbat we had with us to fend those rogue Pokémon off, but the damage had been done. It's beyond me why they were so determined to take us down, but Conway just wasn't able to hang off of the helicopter forever. He fell off."

"To his death, presumably," Saturn assumed, which Mars confirmed with a nod. "So with the helicopter in ruins, you were unable to at least retrieve the body."

That response took Mars by surprise; she didn't expect Saturn to be so quickly nonchalant about hearing of his cousin's death. Then again, it was made quite obvious by Saturn himself that he couldn't care less for Conway… "Why do you want his frozen old corpse?" she asked. "What's the use?"

"It's a necessary instrument we'll need in order to stage a more appropriate death for him," Saturn told her. "We can't risk the media coming upon any clues that will tie my cousin's death to us, and the helicopter's remains couldn't be far from his body. We'll have to relocate the body and dump it off far away from that route so that we could never possibly be implicated."

"Good luck finding it," Mars muttered. "You'd have to dig through who knows how many feet of snow to even reach the body at this point, and everything looks the same on Route 216. And it's going to be suspicious for the passerby residents to see a bunch of grunts digging in the snow until the end of time. What you're asking for is unreasonable."

Saturn glared, unwilling to let a loose end stay that way. "Listen, Mars. You got into this-"

"No, _you_ listen!" Mars interrupted, standing up and pointing her finger right in Saturn's face. "You're the one who sent me out on the mission! If you wanted things to go your way, then you should've gone yourself! But if you want to take the reigns now and spend all your precious time digging for a dead body, then be my guest! I did what was asked of me and I've got my reward. As far as I'm concerned, I'm so done with this case."

She was right. It wasn't for her lack of trying why she could only partially fulfill the mission. There was no way Mars was able to foresee the surprise attack and the helicopter being torn to shreds. Saturn sighed, turning away. "Fine. Consume this garbage until you burst; I would be more than happy to have you replaced," he bitterly replied, nodding a farewell to her as he left the premises. He'd gotten the answers he wanted, and if Mars had no desire to cooperate with him on recovering Conway's body, then she was under no obligation to do so. Saturn had to rectify this before it came back and bit him, he knew.

"I'll just hire some outside resources," he planned. "It shouldn't take them more than a week to recover the body and rid the area of the evidence of our presence. That way, should the latter happen first, we won't be implicated regardless of whether or not he's found within that period of time. After all, I shouldn't go too long without informing my family of their loss. That in itself will be a perfect opportunity in more ways than one…"

Saturn smirked; a mischievous glint shined in his eyes. "But I highly doubt you will be missed, little cousin," he said in quite a devilish tone. "Regardless, I'll put a good effort into making a suitable funeral in your honor. Then your parents will definitely be compelled to give me the rights to the rest of your belongings, including any other useful information you're holding from me."

The circumstances behind Conway's death still baffled Saturn… never before had he heard of a wild Gliscor or Honchkrow attacking man-made aircrafts with no rhyme or reason to their actions, much less the two vastly different species teaming up and doing so together.

A Honchkrow, though… something about that detail struck Saturn as a detail he should keep in mind. He had watched the entire Plumeria Contest, but did not fully remember the details and therefore could not immediately recall that it was coincidentally a Honchkrow that Conway faced on a live national broadcast shortly before his demise. He failed to ask Mars whether or not Conway was alone at the time when she met up with the young man.

For the time being, Saturn was far too busy making arrangements for the cover-up immediately after exiting the party. The rest of his mind was clouded up with eager fantasies of being the one to take everything Conway ever had to his name once it was all made official.

* * *

The very much alive Conway himself had no idea what he would be coming home to. Granted, he was taking his time going back down Route 216… while Paul desired to forget their temporary partnership, Conway wasn't so eager to let go. Perhaps it wouldn't have been so bad if Conway hadn't been kidnapped, seduced, and narrowly evading his untimely demise at the time; Conway was very adept in enduring Paul's verbal abuse… and that boy had plenty to give.

But with so much trauma hitting Conway at once, he needed someone there for him, and instead of doing that, Paul outright accused and abandoned him over a misunderstanding. He needed a few days to cope with this, realizing he was alone in the middle of nowhere with a family who couldn't care less about his woes, and worst of all, the cousin Conway had so admired after all these years appeared to be in the same boat.

It was a lot for anyone to take, and Conway had never before felt so weak, used, and betrayed than he had now. It seemed no one was on his side except for the small bundle of Pokémon who were resting nearby the hot spring Conway had discovered days ago to melt away his sorrows. The steaming water was not doing its job as efficiently as Conway hoped, unfortunately. He rested his arms on the rocky edge of the natural spring and moped, trying to figure out where to go from here. He had contemplated calling Sloan to confront him directly, but Conway found he had no courage to do so. After what Mars had done to him, he was certain Sloan could inflict a much harsher punishment if he felt the need.

Slowking patted Conway on the shoulder sympathetically, really being the only one who could understand what Conway was going through by being able to read his mind. Heracross, Aggron, and Castform remained by his side as well, but only Slowking could really get him to talk in a time like this.

"It's been a few days now, hasn't it?" he said with a sigh. "Guess there's no reason to think this whole thing was a nightmare any longer… I thought this would clear my mind, but I still don't have the faintest clue of what to do next."

Slowking nodded to him, apparently urging Conway to not rush and take his time. This was a delicate matter and a difficult one to take up alone. Conway needed to recharge his spirit as much as possible to take on this new obstacle in his life.

"I know he's practically a demon child, but I can't help but worry about Paul," Conway admitted, groaning. "But for all I know, he's probably already left Snowpoint City with his Icicle Badge and on his way back down now. Maybe I should just wait…?"

Just then, off in the snowy distance, Conway spotted a couple of men digging around the snow, slowly progressing toward his general area. With such dark and heavy clothes, they looked anything but friendly. Conway was definitely not inclined to call out to them himself even though this was the first time since splitting ways with Paul that he'd even seen another person. After the encounter with Mars, Conway was much more wary about presenting himself to strangers. He had no idea what his cousin truly was in this world. His status as a rich kid would make him an easy way for any crook to earn a nice sum of money via a ransom.

Perhaps he was just being paranoid, but Conway had no desire to take his chances. He recalled all of his Pokémon and prepared to leave the area, only to realize there was no exit that wouldn't completely expose his presence. For all Conway knew, he had inadvertently run in with the Sinnoh region's Mafia whom his cousin may or may not be part of. Digging various holes around the route just reeked of suspicious behavior.

There was no way for Conway to leave the area. And the men were coming closer, though they hadn't yet realized someone was occupying the hot spring. Conway then realized his own carryon bag would give away his presence and hastily exited the water, carelessly flinging the bag over the edge of the hill where the hot spring was situated. Conway winced as he heard the bag open up and spill his belongings, knowing it would be quite the ordeal to sort out later, but the cold was far too intense for Conway to stay out in his trunks for more than a few seconds before he returned to the water, immersing most of his body underneath it while keeping an eye on the men. Eventually, they were close enough for Conway to overhear their conversation.

"We're a bit off course, don't ya think?" one of them asked after shoveling out another deep hole of snow, looking to his partner. "Just how big a range was the boss talkin' about? Ya'd think he'd have a good idea where that body was dropped."

"Wasn't there," his partner replied after taking a breather. They'd been at this for quite a while now. "So he's got no clue where the kid fell off. And that might not even matter; you know how this place is… with blizzards about."

The first man nodded, dreading the work still ahead of them. "For all we know, the kid's under five feet of snow. No one's gonna stumble into the corpse and immediately think of him, really."

"He has his reasons, I'm sure," the other figured, continuing to dig. "Point is, he wants that body dug up and tossed to the nearest ocean. Then no one's gonna know what really happened."

All of this was matching up scarily well to what happened to Conway, and he was very much aware of this. What was especially horrifying were the numerous implications that he was presumed dead. Conway didn't once think of how Mars would perceive his fall because he wanted to stop thinking about her completely. But thinking back on it… yes, under normal circumstances, Conway should have died from falling at such a great altitude.

"Hope he fell in one piece, at least," the first man wished. "Otherwise it's gonna be a nightmare collectin' whatever didn't stick to him after the fall…"

"Who knows what we'll find under here?" the second wondered. "This place is dangerous; bet it's taken lots of lives. So we've gotta confirm the identity before we go celebratin' over dead body parts."

"Green hair, right?" his partner recalled. "Dorky-lookin' glasses… wonder if those got lost too."

The man who kept digging shrugged, thinking back on the report. "Probably. But it can't be too hard to identify a teen, right? I like to think we'd know a dead nerd if we came across one."

Conway tried his hardest not to wail in fear. It was difficult to believe otherwise: these shady men were looking for him and expecting him to be dead. He assumed well enough their "boss" was likely his cousin, whom Conway couldn't even begin to wonder about in regards to motives. Still, this was obviously a cover-up so that Sloan could ensure that he and his "company" could not be implicated for this alleged tragedy.

Much as he wanted to correct those men, Conway knew he would likely end up dead for real if he tried to confront them. He always had issues with properly confronting people… but this time, he had every reason to want to run away from the situation. He scowled as they came closer to the hot spring, knowing that there weren't many places for him to hide if they actually started looking around there.

The spring was connected to a small cove, where the water was especially warm. Presumably, this was the spring's source. That was Conway's only option for a hiding place, and with the way the cove echoed and rebound every noise coming from it, Conway would have to remain perfectly silent and still in order for it to work.

"Hey, what's that over there?" the first man asked, pointing to the hot spring, still far away enough to not notice Conway peeking out from the edge. Once Conway realized he was being pointed at, he whimpered with terror and ducked his head, trying not to flail crazily into the water as he immediately retreated into the cove.

The other man, evidently more perceptive than the first, heard a few splashes coming from the area. It was easy to identify, but he frowned ominously. "That there's a hot spring," he explained. "And from the sounds of things, something may be alive up there."

"Ya think so?" his partner asked, squinting into the distance. "Looks like an ideal restin' spot. Doubt the body's there, though."

"But someone could have overheard us talking before," the other mentioned, ceasing his digging and heading up towards that location. "It's our policy to not let anyone know about us and live to tell the tale to others."

"Oh yeah," the first one now remembered, smirking and following his cohort. "Well, if someone _is_ up there, it'll be a nice way to spice up this dull day, right?"

Conway was in for it. He reached the cove well before either of them made it to the spring, but he was far from safe. He pressed himself against the hard, rocky wall near the entrance, hoping he wouldn't have to risk making a noise by moving further in. He covered his mouth with his hand, not willing to risk any amount of noise escaping his lips, either.

The two men scanned the area thoroughly once they arrived. Though Conway had covered his tracks relatively well, he couldn't do much about the fresh footprints in the snow from him and his Pokémon.

"Yeah, someone's been here," the second man confirmed. "As recently as today. Don't think it's a coincidence that nobody's here now."

"Well, where'd they go?" the first inquired, poking the spring with his shovel and hitting the bottom, confirming that no one was hiding in that particular area. "We've got prints, but nothin' else."

"Try poking in there," the other man suggested, pointing to the cove. "It's a dark cove, but if somebody's really in there, they've got no place to run."

Pulling his shovel back to the ground, it was obvious that the first shady worker was a bit squeamish of the prospect. "That means we've gotta step into the water, boss. Our legs are gonna be popsicles once we get outta here."

The mature half of the duo just shook his head. "Tough it out; we're professionals, remember? Let's not risk our heads getting offed just because we were afraid to get our feet wet."

"If ya say so," his partner sighed, stepping into the pool of warm, steaming water and trying to enjoy that as much as he could before the inevitable torture began once he had to get out. "Let's see… looks like the water gets deeper in there, man."

Nodding in agreement, the man's partner followed, focusing on what little he could see inside the cove while the other tentatively poked around the area with his shovel.

Being so close to the entrance, Conway was getting a good look of that shovel nearly hitting his head. He backed up as much as he could as the man blinded by the darkness carelessly thrust the shovel into the rocky wall. Mere inches away, Conway shuddered and sunk himself almost completely into the water. That man with the shovel was heading his way while the other covered the opposite side. It only seemed inevitable that he would be found and consequently killed in this hot spring in the middle of nowhere.

Conway was helpless to contain his fearful shuddering, knowing the end was nigh. Unfortunately for him, that caused a bit of noise as he shivered furiously in the water. The man on the opposite side of the cove heard the reverberating noise and looked over to the apparent source, though it was still too dark to see what was causing it.

"Did you hear that?" he asked his coworker while wading over to the other side.

Said coworker nodded. "Sure did. We've got a live one in here somewhere, and I think I'm pretty close…"

No more than a few feet, really. Conway had nowhere to go without exposing himself. He knew this was the end, especially when he heard the shovel about to crash over his head…

But it never happened. A flurry of splashes away from Conway came about, distracting both men.

"Over there!" the man further away shouted. "Whoever it is, they're trying to escape!"

"I'm on it!" his partner assured, marching through the water towards the target, which was flailing and splashing towards the entrance. A few adorable chirps were heard from the splashing, making even Conway wonder what was saving his life.

Once the splashing reached the entrance, the light shined down and revealed the culprit: a Smoochum struggling to swim in water that was relatively deep for her.

"Aw, nuts," the man with the shovel grumbled, easily snatching up the Smoochum and glaring at her. "We got ourselves into this over a lil' chic like this?!"

"They _are_ native to this area," the other man recalled. "This one must have gotten lost, obviously. That explains all the splashing we heard, though. That thing can barely swim."

It was quite the dissatisfying result. The man with the shovel eyed the Kiss Pokémon for a moment, contemplating what to do from there. "This thing's practically harmless, right? Any point in killin' it?"

"Not really," his partner replied. "But it never hurts to be too cautious. Should be an easy job."

"You're right," the other man agreed, grinning at the intimidated Smoochum between his fingers. "Alright, then. So to make this trip worth _somethin'_…"

Conway was horrified. He was about to bear witness to a murder of an innocent baby Pokémon and there was nothing he could do to interfere. That Smoochum had practically saved his life, and Conway felt miserable knowing he would never be able to repay that adorable Pokémon.

But just then, the Smoochum eyed the man holding her. And before he could make a move, the capturer was overwhelmed with flying hearts as Smoochum began to blow kisses directly at his face. The man became dazed and confused, stumbling backwards into the water, releasing his hold on Smoochum as a result.

Shock and awe; Conway was able to identify what Smoochum had just done: the Sweet Kiss move.

"A pest of a runt, aren't you?!" the other man shouted angrily, marching over to the general area. "I'll teach you…!"

But Smoochum had already started another round of her Sweet Kiss; hearts flew rampantly against the man, disorienting him. He fell against the wall, unable to focus or concentrate due to his confusion.

Conway was amazed, but a little intimidated at the same time. He knew there was a distinct possibility that he would get Sweet Kissed into submission as well, which was something he wanted to avoid. But he smiled in relief when Smoochum (who was still on the first man's belly) looked over to Conway and smiled at him, jumping repeatedly on the belly as if she were trying to tell him to escape while he still could.

Not about to waste this opportunity, Conway dashed out of the cove and out of the spring entirely. Luckily, he kept his Pokéballs in the pockets of his swimming trunks and immediately released Heracross and Castform; the only two on his team who could recollect his belongings that he tossed over the cliff. He shivered while he waited, but his Pokémon were intuitive enough to know Conway needed his clothes back first. Though he was still absolutely freezing, Conway was thankful to be fully clothed again. He looked back towards the cove where Smoochum still was, seemingly keeping an eye on the men in case they recovered from their confusion.

Piece by piece, Conway was getting his supplies back. Once he was fully packed, he recalled both of his Pokémon and once again checked the cove to see the men starting to recover.

"Gah, no time for a chat, I guess!" he wailed, suited up and ready to bolt. "I can't let those guys see me!"

But Smoochum heard the young man's concerns and took on the matter herself. She began singing with her high-pitched yet gentle voice. Conway immediately recognized this as Sing, which was a surefire way to put anyone to sleep. He covered his ears so that he would be unaffected; the other men, however, were lulled straight to sleep.

"Quite a little miracle worker, aren't you?" Conway complimented, now able to rest easy. "I really don't know what to say… or even do. I owe you, Smoochum."

Smoochum directly addressed Conway now, firing out a fairly weak stream of snow and ice from her mouth in order to create a small, temporary path across the hot spring. She waddled over to the other side as quickly as she could, and Conway understood that she wanted to escape this place as much as he did. He extended a hand to her, which Smoochum graciously accepted by hopping onto Conway, latching herself to his arm and climbing up until she reached his shoulder where she stayed put, now contented.

"Guess I can return the favor after all," Conway figured, unable to stop smiling now. With his belongings gathered and the Smoochum in tow, Conway hightailed it out of the hot spring area and swiftly sped off down Route 216.

Running so quickly down a route covered with snow and ice wasn't exactly the smartest move on Conway's part, but to his credit, he was more concerned with making as much distance as possible from those horrid men.

Not exactly the most coordinated guy in the world, Conway found himself slipping and sliding down an icy plane, doing his best to keep himself on his feet as he descended at a rate far beyond what he could control. He managed to keep this up for a while as long as the path was clear, but after some time, it seemed Conway was reaching the end of a slope; at the end, he would fall some distance (not a deadly one, at least) and straight into a large pile of fluffy snow.

Conway popped his head out from the powder, shaking the bits of snow from his hair and continuing to shiver uncontrollably as the adrenaline quickly wore off. He paused, however, and was very surprised to see that Smoochum had remained attached to him the entire time.

"You wanted to get away from those jerks as much as I did, right?" Conway assumed, smiling at her. "I really must thank you, little one. You definitely saved my life back there."

The Smoochum chirped happily, showing signs of its own relief, but remained on Conway's shoulder despite the fact that the ride was over.

"Oh, that's right!" Conway realized, scanning the area. "This is where Paul and I found a small gathering of Smoochum while we were traveling a few days ago. You wouldn't happen to be part of the swarm, would you?"

It was true; the Smoochum nodded, as she completely understood what Conway was saying. In spite of her young age, being partially a Psychic-type allowed her to easily interpret the words of humans.

Conway continued looking around, realizing the area was practically empty; still covered in snow and ice as it was last time, but no mass of Smoochum were seen anywhere nearby.

"Well, I _do_ owe you for saving my life," Conway muttered. "And it's not like I'm pressed for time to do anything… I need to think of a plan before I head back to Veilstone City."

He looked down at the still-smiling Smoochum. "So while I concoct a plan, I'll help you find your friends, alright? Does that sound like a good deal to you?"

That was when Smoochum squealed and hopped repeatedly on Conway's shoulder, giving the side of his face a big hug.

"Ah-ahh…!"

This brought back rather unpleasant memories. Instantly, Conway thought of Mars again… that woman he was determined to boot out of his memories for good. But he could never forget what she did to him in that helicopter. What she did against his will… and even in spite of that, Conway hated that tiny, minuscule part of himself that enjoyed it.

But somehow… this seemed different.

This Smoochum was innocent. She clung to Conway and never let go; she obviously had fun on that "ride" down the mountain and it appeared that she greatly enjoyed Conway's company.

But more than anything... Smoochum seemed to be able to sense Conway's inner turmoil. Falling in line with a Smoochum's usual mannerisms, she decided to use her lips to examine her new companion. Conway froze completely and helplessly whispered a wail as he felt a pair of lips peck his cold cheek. Unlike Mars' torture, however, this was brief and absolutely harmless. Still, it brought back rather disturbing images.

The horrible visions dissipated when Conway found Smoochum right up against his face, cooing with affection and pecking various areas of his face, including his outrageously expensive custom goggle-glasses.

"H-hey, don't stain these!" he pleaded; though Conway was shaking, he could not bring himself to fling Smoochum off of him. "These are… these are quite pricey, you see. The oil stains will make it hard for me to see, and…"

Smoochum merely giggled and gave Conway another peck on the cheek. This time it wasn't alarming at all; Conway knew he could trust the tiny Kiss Pokémon who just saved his life; he figured that perhaps he should try being more of a gentleman in return.

Even if Conway was convinced that those days were over. All thanks to Mars…

"C-come on, now!" Conway urged, pulling Smoochum away from his face, but still holding the young female Pokémon firmly in his hands. "We shouldn't dawdle. It could take a while to find your group and even longer for me to find a place to stay. I know Pokémon swarms tend to move along quickly, so it would be terrible if you were left behind, dear."

In spite of that, Smoochum appeared to have no concern over that whatsoever. She clung to Conway's hands as if she had no intention of letting go. This gesture confused Conway for a while…

… But then he smiled. Conway was a sharp one, indeed. Perhaps he was wrong about Paul, but he knew he had to be right about this.

"Pardon me if I'm being a bit forward, Miss," Conway began; his goggles gleaming with the aid of the small streaks of light shooting down from the massive clouds. "But are you giving me the impression that you wish to embark upon a journey with me?"

The response was an energetic, high-pitched "Smoo, smoo…!" added with the Smoochum nodding her head vigorously. She wasn't sure what drew her to this boy, but he seemed familiar to another one a few days ago who expressed interest in capturing one before being dragged away by his grumpy cohort. They looked exactly the same, as a matter of fact.

Things had changed since then, obviously. That grumpy boy was nowhere to be seen. Conway looked utterly miserable and his initial reactions told the psychic Smoochum that he had gone through quite an ordeal… and it wasn't over yet.

She jumped from Conway's grasp and landed on the snow, promptly hopping up and down as if to beg him to capture her. Unlike most of her group, this Smoochum rather liked the idea of having a human trainer one day. To be captured by a boy in need of emotional support… Smoochum knew she was the best Pokémon for the job.

Luckily, Conway was perceptive enough to decipher the small Pokémon's desires. And conveniently enough, Conway did have a spare empty Pokéball on hand. While he was packing back at home, Conway highly doubted he was ever going to actually use it, but this time…? Was he ever glad to be proven wrong!

"You're pretty bold about this," Conway noted. "I like that in a Pokémon. You'll be a perfect fit for my team." He posed, readying his Pokéball by pressing the button to enlarge it. "Thank you again, for everything…"

Then, he let it loose. "Now, let's go, Pokéball…!"

He tossed it into the air; Smoochum jumped up as high as she could to meet it and tagged the ball with her hand upon contact. She was consumed with red light and taken within. The Pokéball closed and dropped to the ground, nudging against the snow left and right a few times before the ball was closed securely; sparkles emitting from the ball to confirm the capture.

Rather than getting hyped up like he used to, Conway calmly picked up the ball containing his new Pokémon and smiled. "And so… I've caught Smoochum. Just as I always wanted…"

Conway pocketed the ball with the others, looking towards the gloomy sky.

"That was a close call," he reflected back on the hot spring situation. "I could have avoided that completely if I hadn't been moping the entire time… Paul never would have done that…"

He frowned just then; why did he keep thinking about that heartless trainer who left him in the dust when he was needed the most? Even if Paul did save Conway's life… it was hard to call him a hero after what he had done.

"Paul's a jerk," Conway confirmed with a low growl. "I withstood his attitude as much as I could… it's no wonder he doesn't have any friends. He doesn't even want them! I never had a chance; I should have paid more attention to those ominous feelings I had back when he spent the night at my house…"

But he thought about the young man a little more…

"But even in spite of that, Paul knew exactly what to do in a crisis," Conway sorrowfully admitted. "He's just as capable of saving my life as I was saving his… and even though it ended up in a loss, he just moved on… kept going." The bespectacled trainer surveyed his surroundings again; the desolate frozen desert. "He's probably already defeated Candice by now, and what have I been doing all this time since we parted ways? _Moping_ over what happened! And because of that, I almost died!"

It was then that Conway realized that this incident he had gotten himself into was much more severe than he initially believed. He didn't have Paul to help him this time… but this was something Conway simply couldn't ignore. It was obvious to him now that Sloan was not the admirable cousin he made himself out to be; there were evil forces at work within Conway's own family, and he had been unaware of it this entire time! It was a huge blow to his ego, but then Conway remembered…

"I really should have seen this coming," he muttered. "And I can't believe I'm saying this, but I've got to take a page out of Paul's book this time! Running away from the situation won't solve a thing; I must directly confront the matter and attack it with full power!"

He dug out his phone, but paused before dialing anything. A horrible realization dawned upon Conway just then. "If I call Sloan now… that's like giving myself away. If he truly believes me to be dead, I've got to use that to my advantage if I'm ever going to get to the bottom of this."

Conway bit his lip in frustration and confusion, unsure of what move to make next. There were so many options… but even in situations like these, Paul always seemed quick to make up his mind. Even if it had gotten him into a few problems of his own, Paul was a very decisive young man. It was why he was so efficient in what he did, after all.

What could he do from here… call his family, possibly, but what would they care about Conway's near-death experience? There was Reggie, but Conway still couldn't bring himself to face the breeder (even via telephone) and admit that he had failed in keeping his promise of looking after Paul. Calling the police wasn't going to do much good when Conway had no idea what sort of organization attempted to kidnap him – he was pretty sure the G on their uniforms _did not_ stand for "government", though.

"I've got to pull myself together," Conway decided, suddenly drawing out all of his Pokéballs and sending out Slowking, Aggron, Heracross, Castform, and even Smoochum all at once. The group of Pokémon looked to Conway with confusion and/or concern, as all were well aware of their trainer's mental and emotional anguish at this point.

"Alright, everyone, it's time to make a stand," Conway announced. "I've let people like Paul trample over me all my life – but no more! We must figure out who my cousin is really working for, why his cohort nearly apprehended me, and why he needed that Uxie book so badly!"

He pointed south towards yet another slippery path. "We'll first need to conquer this route, which I know we all can do, but there is another matter at hand…!"

His goggle-glasses gleamed at that moment; Conway's eyes were staring hard into the eyes of his own Pokémon. "I really cannot take this on alone. And since we no longer have Paul on hand, I'm counting on each and every one of you to help me in whatever conflict I face as I come closer to finding out the truth! Because really… I remember the helicopter's interior. It wasn't just Mars in there… Sloan could be leading his own army for all I know. That's why we'll need to fight!"

All of the Pokémon cried out in agreement, relieved that Conway was getting his head into the game. Smoochum latched herself onto Conway's shoulder again, giving him an affectionate peck on the cheek. Again, Conway's first reaction was to shudder and flinch, but remembered that this not Mars… and honestly, after the emotional abuse Paul put him through combined with the fact that his entire family obviously didn't love him; this affection was rather welcome at this point.

But as Conway lightly laughed at Smoochum's antics, he realized something else very important:

He _did_ need to fight back. But with his Pokémon alone, the experience he had… could Conway really do it? Ever since he became a trainer, Conway was completely unsure of which route of expertise to take. His status as a Jack of All Trades really exposed the various weaknesses Conway possessed. All he wanted to know was that he had a strong desire to _learn_. Learn everything about Pokémon… though the battles thrilled him and the Contests made him happy, Conway had foregone his Coordinator option for Paul's sake. It wasn't exactly valid now that the two were separated, but still… Contests were not going to give Conway the strength and experience he needed to overcome his adversary. Not only that, but Contests were broadcast everywhere in Sinnoh. If Sloan were to happen upon another Contest and saw Conway competing… that would ruin his advantage.

His battle with Maylene… _that_ was a workout. Gym Battles weren't televised… and Conway knew firsthand how strong Paul was and easily saw that it was largely due to his long and detailed history of facing Gym Leaders. He remembered Paul's battle with Byron… the intensity and ingenious strategies pulled. Conway could learn a lot from Byron. And there were so many Gym Leaders out there in Sinnoh that he had not yet faced…

Conway knew this was the only way. Standard training wasn't going to cut it this time; he needed to work on his weakness - that being poor at improvising in the event that his plan fails – and hone the aspects of his battling style that made him a competent battler in the first place.

So that was that: Conway chose the path of battling. More than anything, now, his greatest desire was to come strong… like Paul, much as Conway hated to admit that.

"We're going to need a lot of training," Conway told his team. "Not only to defeat what stands against us, but to ensure your safety." He had already lost Paul; he couldn't bear to lose someone else. "So our next course of action is to return to Veilstone City. While we stock up on supplies and whatever I can get from home, I'll be deciding which Gym Leader we'll be facing next. That's right: we're going the same path as Paul! Qualifying for the Sinnoh League will prove that we're strong enough to take on my cousin!"

Conway had no idea just how powerful his cousin really was, but remembered admiring his Toxicroak back in the day when Sloan made a rare appearance at his house. It was definitely a Pokémon that would be a challenge at this point. Who knows whatever else he acquired…

"While I'm there, I'm going to have to face Reggie and tell him the truth," Conway decided. "Even if it's going to be difficult admitting to him how badly I failed… I'm sure Paul isn't planning on letting him know about it. He can't be left in the dark."

He looked to the Smoochum who looked to her trainer with adoring eyes. "Unfortunately, my dear, I'll have to train you as well. But I'll make sure you'll enjoy it, okay?" Conway patted her head, giving the young Kiss Pokémon an encouraging smile. Smoochum was easy to please, thankfully. Conway couldn't stop his smiling when she proceeded to hug his neck; this affection was so direly needed, after all.

"Now, onward!" Conway shouted after getting his fill of that therapy. "Everyone, return!"

Each of Conway's Pokémon returned to their balls, and he securely stored them over his belt. Conway grabbed his bag, looked ahead in the direction of his planned destination, and started off. He never before felt so determined and alive; this was even more poignant than his two landmark victories in the past. A mission was assigned to Conway; something that apparently only he could complete.

As he marched on with determination and a renewed sense of who he was, Conway smirked to himself as he remembered a conversation between himself and Paul the day the two reunited:

"_Do whatever you want, but back off, alright? I don't need a sidekick. This is _my_ journey. You need to find your own path and stick with it, because I can guarantee you'll never be the second coming of Wallace."_

"_I agree, sidekick definitely isn't me. How about co-star, then? We'll split it evenly, fifty-fifty. Sound good?"_

"_In your dreams._"

"Seems I'm a suitable protagonist after all," Conway noted. "Whatever journey you're embarking on now, Paul, know that _I've_ finally got my own journey, too!"

And he journeyed off.

* * *

And what of Paul's journey? He was so close to Snowpoint City after leaving Squallville, and he insisted to not rest until he reached that destination. He feared another stop at any other town would lead to disaster somehow.

However, he was still experiencing disasters in his own way. Since Paul refused any form of decent refuge, he toughed out some of the harshest elements Sinnoh had to offer. He climbed, he crawled… it was very similar to his trek on the dangerous path on Route 216, as a matter of fact. But in spite of Route 217's harsher obstacles, Paul was at least well-equipped to deal with it this time. Much as he wanted to ditch the coat that Conway bought for him, it was an utter necessity to brave the elements.

Still, the coat was not enough to protect Paul from the various injuries he sustained while hiking up the roughest sector of Route 217. The snow was up to his waist; the blizzard just wouldn't taper off. The wind chill itself was nigh unbearable, but Paul had self-preservation tactics this time. He knew in dire situations like these to rest in deep ditches of the snow and cover himself in order to protect himself from the wind. That in itself was a life-saver.

Paul was willing to undergo any kind of torture just to get his mind off Conway and Ash. And this definitely kept him busy; this time, his Pokémon knew better than to come out of their own free will to help out.

A nasty incident with a boulder and a giant shard of ice left Paul with nasty head and face injuries. Feeling the blood trickle down and freeze against his face, Paul kept his hood on at all times from that point on. He was worn and torn; beaten and battered… it certainly took him more than a day to reach his destination due to his choice to take the path often not taken.

Paul collapsed on his knees when he finally saw a group of houses, all with distinct crimson roofs. He smirked, definitely having lost some of his sanity from the brutal journey. But by the gods, he _made it_.

Snowpoint City: The City of Snow.

Now all he had to do was find this "Candice" person and get this over with. Paul didn't care that he was beaten and battered from the traveling; he figured if he could defeat Byron while suffering a cold (not to mention type disadvantages across his entire team), he could easily take out some girl and her fragile Ice-type Pokémon.

Then Paul remembered the strategy that Conway had created for him weeks ago for this specific battle. The fellow trainer put _immense_ amounts of work into creating a viable strategy for yet another scenario where nearly all of his Pokémon suffered a weakness to Ice. Paul and Conway talked for hours, building up foolproof strategies for each other. It worked like a charm for Conway when he had to battle Maylene; logically, Paul's chances of winning were drastically increased with this strategy made from Conway and his desire to see Paul succeed in his goals. A work of their friendship…

… A friendship that no longer existed.

Paul hated everything that reminded him of Conway. Due to the nature of his traveling, the heavy coat was not expendable… but the strategy was, in his eyes. He pulled it out of his bag, quietly growling as his hand crushed the paper when he formed a fist. Paul promptly approached the nearest garbage can to toss the evidence of his association with that young man…

… But before that, he promptly fell into a pit before he could reach it. Paul was practically buried in snow; it was so deep. He flailed and struggled to free himself, way beyond tired of covering himself in that powder to shelter himself as it was.

Just then, he heard the giggles of small children. Paul turned towards the direction of the noise (still in the midst of freeing himself from the pit) and noticed a group of children ice skating. The one that led the group, however, was much older than these tykes; she had to at least be in her mid to late teens. Initially, Paul was disturbed by the way this girl dressed; sure, that sky blue sweater seemed thick enough and appropriate for the weather, but she was also wearing a _tiny khaki skirt_. Her striped socks only barely came below her knees, and they didn't look thick enough to cover up her otherwise-bare legs. Her hair was long, but up in pigtails, which would do nothing to keep her warm.

Paul couldn't stop watching this girl so effortlessly brave the elements as she skated across the frozen pond with elegance and grace, as if she'd been doing it for years. And here Paul was, borderline hypothermia once more a concern… as well as his health.

Indeed, what bothered Paul more than anything else… even more than Ash and Conway, was the discovery of his apparent bad health. Paul still refused to look at the test results given to him by Doctor Dalton in Squallville; he was absolutely convinced that there was nothing wrong with him.

He'd come this far… he had endured rough journeys in Hoenn, Kanto, and Johto (though none of those regions had this arctic weather)… and even though Paul had come down with illnesses from time to time and took longer than usual to recover from them, Paul didn't think there was anything odd about his health. Only that on occasion he would still cough up blood… that one, he still blamed Conway for it, but even more, that woman… Mars.

Paul and Conway may have been separated now, but they still had a common enemy. The only difference was that Paul was barely involved in the attack while Conway seemed to be an essential element towards the goals of the organization Mars worked for.

But Paul was quite self-centered compared to Conway; he was more interested in reaching his own goals than investigating a former friend's problem.

And now with the matter of his health… Paul would say he had no interest in reading the papers, and while there was some truth to that, the real reason was simply fear. Paul was afraid of what the test results would say about him… after all, the doctor had worked with his family, particularly his late mother, in the past. This man's medical opinion was one to be taken seriously.

Whenever this bothered him severely, Paul would constantly tell himself out loud, "There's nothing wrong with me… there's nothing wrong with me… there's nothing wrong with me…" This was a time that called for it.

"There's _nothing_ wrong with me," Paul insisted to himself, wondering if he should toss the medical papers away into the trash bin along with Conway's strategy guide. He had no desire to carry either document any longer. Still yet, Paul was getting worse; more blood spilled down his face… overall, he felt like he'd been hit by a car. Conway spared no expense in getting Paul the best winter coat money could buy, but even it was not invincible against the elements for a long period of time.

As he hated to be seen like this, Paul still kept his hood on to hide his blood-streaked face. Remembering Squallville's Nurse Joy freaking out over a cut on his hand and his coughing up of blood, Paul had no desire to properly show his face to anyone.

"_There's nothing wrong with me!!_" he shouted, perhaps a bit too loudly. Paul had managed to escape the snow pit, at least, but it was amazing in itself that Paul finally reached his goal. All he needed to do was ask any random stranger of Candice…

"You sure about that? It sure looks like there's something wrong with you!"

The voice was female, and her statement was followed by a crowd of children shouting "Yes!" in agreement with her.

Paul barely had it in him to register the fact that he was surrounded by easily imitatable children, but the older girl who stood in front of them was hard to ignore.

"I'm… _fine_…" he muttered, really not wanting to have to prove it.

"It's not easy to get here, you know!" the girl informed him. "So it's no surprise you're roughed up, but it looks like you took the toughest path to reach this place. Is that true?"

Paul, still focused on the snow (now turning red from the droplets of his blood), nodded slowly. "I did."

"Amazing!" the girl shouted. "You've got to have some mad awesome kiai to get through a path like that!"

That took Paul off guard. "Mad awesome what…?"

"Your kiai!" she repeated. "I can't remember the last time I saw a person who took that path, really. Would you happen to be a trainer?"

"That's right," Paul confirmed, his voice now sounding quite raspy. Perhaps he shouldn't have yelled so loudly earlier. "I'm here to conquer the Snowpoint Gym."

The teenage girl squealed with excitement. The children all cheered. Paul had no idea what was going on.

"We almost never get Gym challengers because of our remote location!" she proclaimed. "So if you made it this far, your kiai must be strong… therefore, you're a formidable competitor!"

Paul had no idea what this "kiai" was and he was far too exhausted to care to know. He knew this was a good sign, though, that his presence was well-received as a battling trainer. "I'll show that Gym Leader just how powerful I am," he claimed. "Tell me where the Gym is and I'll go right away and win that badge."

"Well, of course I can tell you where our Gym is," the girl offered. "I happen to be its Leader!"

How unexpected that he would run right into the Gym Leader the second he entered Snowpoint City. He looked up at her, eyes widened. "Then you're… Candice?!"

"So you already know my name," she noted in a sly tone. "Guess I must have some reputation. The truth is, I wish I could take on more challengers, but this is nature's way. But since you came all this way, I'll give you the kiai battle you want! The challenge is so on!"

"Then let's get started," Paul suggested, finally able to stand up. "I made it up here by myself without using any of my Pokémon, so they're all fully ready to fight."

"Without using any of your Pokémon…" Candice muttered, then squeaking and stepping back when she finally noticed the bloody snow. "Y-you've been bleeding this entire time! You can't challenge me now!"

"_Yes I can_," Paul asserted, stern and stiff. "There's _nothing_ wrong with me."

Candice shook her head, now worried. "You don't look so good, you know. We should at least get you cleaned up before we battle. Neither of us want to get my Gym covered with blood stains, right?"

Reluctantly, Paul nodded. "I'll clean up, but I expect my Gym Battle _today_, Candice."

"I understand," Candice replied with a nod. "Look, I'll take you to the Pokémon Center so you can get yourself decent. Nurse Joy will tell you where the Snowpoint Gym is. I'll be going back to the Gym in the meantime!" she announced, looking towards the flock of children behind her. "I'm sorry to cut off our session so early today, kids. But you know how rare it is for us to get a challenger."

"We understand, Teach!" said a little boy in the crowd. "But can we watch?"

Immediately, the other children simultaneously requested the same privilege of Candice, making her smile. "It'd be great to have an audience for our Gym Battle," she said, then looking to Paul. "Is that alright for you?"

"I don't care," Paul replied coldly. "As long as I get my Gym Battle today, it doesn't matter what else happens."

"Then it's settled!" Candice decided. She always seemed so full of energy, even in spite of the freezing temperatures. "You all get to watch! Go on ahead of me if you want, kids. I'll come to the Gym after taking my challenger to the Pokémon Center, because I've totally gotta get my kiai on for this battle! It's been _way_ too long!"

"We love watching you train!" a young girl with admiring eyes said. "We hope you win, Miss Candice!"

That prompted Paul to glare at the child. Normally he wouldn't bother to go this low, but in his current state… "I didn't come all this way to _lose_."

"You'll see!" another boy said. "Not a lot of people can beat Candice!"

"Settle down, settle down," Candice urged. "Save that energy for the battle, because you're all gonna cheer me on, right?"

"RIGHT!" they all shouted in unison.

Ready to set things into motion, Candice snagged Paul by the arm. "Then get going!" she instructed. "While I take this gentleman to the Pokémon Center!"

The children ran off, heeding their teacher's order. Paul was a bit put off by Candice suddenly grabbing him, but he didn't mind it as much this time… Paul realized it was hurting him to even walk at this point. He truly was a mess.

* * *

"You should have treated those cuts immediately, Paul," Snowpoint City's Nurse Joy scolded, though did so gently. This one bore a light blue cross and was hard at work trying to wipe all of Paul's wounds clean.

There were a lot more than he thought. Even in areas where the skin wasn't broken, Paul found his arms and torso full of swollen, discolored bruises. For all Paul knew, his ribs possibly weren't fully healed yet, and even if they were, still tender. He did experience some pain in his chest, but it was hard to identify since Paul was truly hurting _everywhere_. The trail he took nearly tore him limb from limb.

"I was going to do that once I got here anyway," Paul lied, sounding very tired at this point. "I know it looks bad, but there's really nothing wrong with me."

"How can you say that when you're in a condition like this?!" Nurse Joy asked in a panic. She really was concerned with Paul's lack of concern for his own wellbeing. "And Candice told me you were to have a Gym Battle today…?"

Paul closed his eyes and nodded. "After you're done cleaning me up, I'm going to challenge her."

Nurse Joy sighed. With an attitude like this, she wasn't that surprised when she learned of Paul's future plans, foolish as they were. "I implore you, Paul, to please take a few days to rest before battling Candice," she pleaded.

"I'm telling you I'm fine," Paul repeated. "There is _nothing_ wrong with me. Just take care of my belongings while I'm gone. I'll pick them up once I've won my battle."

Paul was completely cleaned off now, but some of those cuts refused to stop bleeding. As a result, his face was covered with bandages. In spite of his lethargic state, he had enough in him to put his jacket back on, followed by the heavy coat. He had no need to tote around his backpack just for the Gym; everything in there was useless for his cause. His Pokémon were attached to his belt; Paul felt that's all he truly needed to defeat that spunky young lady.

"I can't force you to stay," Nurse Joy acknowledged sadly. "But please come back if you're unable to battle."

Paul nodded to Nurse Joy. "I will." He then stood up, still unable to resist a wince from the still-present pain. There wasn't much Nurse Joy could do about his bruises in a timely manner. Paul had made up his mind and was far too stubborn to go back on his word.

Nurse Joy's eyes widened when she noticed traces of dried blood on Paul's heavy coat; the blood from a few days ago when he reached Squallville. She wanted to say something about it, but knew she would only be blown off.

"Thank you for your help," Paul told her before he left the building. It was an obviously-forced show of gratitude, but Nurse Joy didn't particularly mind.

"Chansey-Chans…!"

"Chansey!" Nurse Joy was surprised by her partner's sudden appearance, and even more surprised that Chansey was going through Paul's opened backpack that he left behind. "You should know better than to invade a patient's privacy! Now close that up!"

The reason for said invasion soon became apparent when Chansey turned to her coworker and revealed a long, detailed statement from a certain doctor.

"That's…" Nurse Joy couldn't help but break her code of honor and grabbed the document. "A statement of the results of a series of tests performed on Paul… by Doctor Dalton of Squallville…?"

Chansey nodded, finding this information vital to figuring out Paul's strange behavior.

"Oh my goodness…" Nurse Joy gasped. "This… if I had known of this, I wouldn't have let him leave!" She glumly looked towards the entrance. "It's too late now… but it's obvious that Paul is in denial. He'll have to learn the hard way, unfortunately…"

The Egg Pokémon agreed, knowing there was no way things were going to go as Paul had planned as long as he was this bad off.

* * *

Rather ashamed of his appearance due to the bandages on his face, Paul kept the heavy coat's hood over his head. He bowed his head, making it nearly impossible to see his face. Nurse Joy had told him earlier where the Snowpoint Gym was, and Paul was making a beeline for it. Candice was waiting for him in there, and regardless of the "kiai" she kept talking about, Paul knew he would be able to beat someone like her.

After all, Paul found Byron to be a much more competent Gym Leader; much more of a threat. And yet, Paul still defeated him while suffering a severe cold. With this girl? Paul foolishly believed this would be a piece of cake.

When he entered the Gym, as he expected, the battling field was an arena of ice. Unlike Canalave's Gym, Snowpoint's was rather straightforward in showing its main arena. Paul noticed that all of those children from earlier were in the audience seats. In the center side of the field was the assigned referee, Mr. Honcho. And finally, on the opposite side of the field from Paul was the energetic Candice, who looked frighteningly confident about her chances in this battle.

"So you made it after all," Candice noted, grinning. "Well, at least you're not bleeding, but I still sense that your kiai has been exhausted just by getting here! You're sure you wanna battle today?"

"I'm doing this _today_," Paul stated, again very stern about his stance. "And I'm doing it right now. I'll give you the kind of battle you want, even if I'm tired. I've done it before; I can do it again."

Candice raised an eyebrow at that last statement. He had challenged other Gym Leaders like this before… perhaps he was going to be a force to be reckoned with?

"I never did get your name, stranger," Candice suddenly remembered. "Care to introduce yourself?"

"Paul," the challenger simply said. "I'm from Veilstone City."

Candice nodded with approval. "That'll do. I think we can start now! The clash of our kiai is ready to begin!"

Again with the "kiai"… Paul sighed. As it was cold being near the field of ice, Paul kept on his heavy coat for this battle, hood and all.

"Then let us begin!" Mr. Honcho announced. "The Snowpoint Gym Battle between Leader Candice and the challenger: Paul from Veilstone City!"

Paul was so relieved to finally have this Gym Battle started… even if he was still in massive pain otherwise.

"This battle will be a four-on-four match," Mr. Honcho continued, which confirmed Conway's suspicions about the slightly unorthodox method of a Snowpoint battle. "The winner will be determined once one side's Pokémon are rendered unable to battle! Additionally, only the challenger is allowed to substitute Pokémon during the battle!"

"You ready to do this?" Candice asked Paul with a smirk. She had a Pokéball in her hand, having already decided which Pokémon to use first. It wasn't the one she usually used first… but she really wanted to test Paul's… "kiai"… by flashing out the big guns first.

Paul nodded, also grabbing one of his Pokéballs. It took him a bit of time to decide which one to start with, as most had type disadvantages, but Paul was still conscious enough to make a solid decision on his own strategy. He completely disregarded everything Conway had ever told him. That left Paul completely without a strategy… there seemed to be many ups and downs on both sides for this battle. Paul was determined to make one Candice would forever remember.

"Battle begin…!" Mr. Honcho called out, officially starting the challenge.

"You think your kiai can match up with mine?!" Candice called out, throwing her Pokéball. "Show him what we're made of, _Abomasnow!_"

Over seven feet tall and nearly three hundred pounds, Candice immediately sent out her trump card. The children in the audience looked on with awe and wonder.

"Wonder what Miss Candice is planning," one girl said out loud. "I've never seen her send out Abomasnow first!"

"I think she really wants to teach that guy a lesson by taking him out in one shot," a young boy hypothesized. "And she knows how to counter her disadvantages, so I think this is already a game over for that guy!"

Paul glared at this challenge. It certainly would have been useful to have Magmar now… "That must be her signature," he muttered to himself. "If she's sending that out already, she still thinks I'm too sick to fight. She wants to make this a swift one. I've got no choice, then…"

It was time for Paul to send out his counter: "Torterra, stand by for battle!"

Countering signature Pokémon with another signature, but there was a problem; Torterra had a double-weakness to Ice-type moves.

Originally, as written in Conway's strategy, Honchkrow was supposed to be sent out first. But just to spite the young man he considered a traitor, Paul decided to completely disregard the strategy and do the opposite of what it suggested. The children were certainly impressed just by seeing a Torterra and realizing how massive the species really was. But they soon recognized what a poor choice this was against a Pokémon like Abomasnow.

"What's that guy thinking?!" another random boy in the crowd yelled out. "Doesn't he know better?!"

Candice simply smirked. She knew this had to be Paul's starter Pokémon, and therefore his most powerful. But could it really show off that power with such a great disadvantage in types?

"I like your style," she complimented. "I certainly didn't expect you to bring out a Grass/Ground-Type to the field."

"I'm just full of surprises," Paul sarcastically replied, deciding to make the first move. "Torterra, use Stone Edge!"

Even Torterra had no idea where Paul was going with this, but it utilized the only effective attack it had against Abomasnow. But much to Paul's horror, Abomasnow stood its ground.

"You can take that, Abomasnow!" Candice ordered. "Let him think that's his ace in the hole!"

Actually… that _was_ the only trump card move Torterra had on hand. Frenzy Plant and Giga Drain would be ineffective… there was Crunch, which Paul taught Torterra to spite Conway, and he was originally going to teach Torterra Iron Head. It would be neutral, but Abomasnow would have to come to Torterra for it to mean anything.

Already frustrated at how badly this boded for him, Paul called out the next attack. "Now use Frenzy Plant!"

Even if it would be ineffective against Abomasnow, it was the strongest known Grass-type move. Surely it would do _some_ damage…

While the thorny roots popped out from the ice and struck Abomasnow, it still remained in fairly good shape. The power in itself was great, but not nearly enough to truly make a dent on Candice's strongest Pokémon. Candice just laughed it off.

"I figured you'd have some sort of unique plan if you were coming at me with a disadvantage!" she chided. "Guess you're not in your right mind to battle after all! Abomasnow, use Blizzard!"

Torterra was unable to move due to using Frenzy Plant. Paul growled as Torterra was hit hard by the ice storm. Paul himself had to shield his face from the frosty debris… Torterra was still in the game after all of that, but various sections of it were frozen.

"Now use Ice Punch!" Candice commanded, causing Abomasnow to charge at the Continent Pokémon with full power. Paul had no idea how to counter this at all… even though he could have used Crunch, he completely forgot about it and had Torterra command another attack.

"Torterra, use-"

Abomasnow landed the hit on Torterra. It was hit _hard_. Paul didn't even have the time to call for the counterattack. But now he was in desperation mode as he saw Torterra falter.

"Giga Drain, now!" he commanded, hoping the ineffective move would at least keep Torterra alive for a bit longer so Paul could find some sort of weakness to Abomasnow, but…

"Ice Shard, then Ice Punch again!"

As a priority move, a gleaming spike of ice slammed into Torterra before it even got the chance to try Giga Drain. The following Ice Punch made sure of that.

There was a thunderous thud as Torterra lost its ability to stand on its feet. It so badly didn't want to fall so easily to this Gym Leader, remembering what Paul had said to it a month ago when he first received Brandon's letter…

"_Don't forget you're going to be participating in Snowpoint City's Gym Battle. You know what type that Gym will be, and you have your work cut out for you. Work hard and prove to me that you're going to take these future battles seriously so I know I can count on you when we face the old man."_

It pained Torterra to go down this quickly. But four direct hits with Ice-type moves were just too much, even for a tank like it. Paul was mortified at the sight.

"Torterra is unable to battle!" Mr. Honcho confirmed. "Abomasnow is the winner!"

Deep down, Torterra definitely hated itself for failing Paul after all the work its trainer had done just to get here. To be all for naught… it was very hard to swallow.

Candice wasn't the least bit surprised, but smiled to the children who cheered for her victory. She was completely convinced by this point that Paul was not in his right mind. She felt had he had, in her opinion, a potentially powerful kiai. But in this state, Paul was simply unable to give it his all.

"Torterra… return," Paul softly said; his ego now crushed completely due to the fact that his Torterra went down so quickly. The match wasn't over yet, however. Paul still had three more left…

"So, your strongest player was taken down in four shots, huh?" Candice asked Paul, which surprised him; that being the fact that she could so quickly identify Torterra as Paul's starter. "I'll make this interesting, then. I'll take out your next Pokémon in _three_ hits with full kiai power!"

That taunt pushed Paul over the edge. "Oh, it will _not!_"

Hastily, he threw out his next competitor. "Honchkrow, stand by for battle…!"

Honchkrow had both a disadvantage and an advantage against Abomasnow. An Ice-type weakness for Honchkrow, but a Flying-type weakness for Abomasnow.

"Hm, a bit more sensible this time!" Candice noted. "Still unpredictable, but I bet you've got a trick up your sleeve."

"Yeah, it's called taking down your Pokémon with Sky Attack!" Paul replied angrily. "Go, Honchkrow!"

Sky Attack was powerful and sure to do significant damage to Abomasnow. But it was an attack that required time to charge… Candice knew how to take advantage of that: her priority move.

"Quick, use Ice Shard!" she called out, which Abomasnow promptly followed through with. In the midst of charging the attack, Honchkrow was unable to dodge the giant block of ice hurled towards it and was slammed hard, barely able to remain in flight mode at this point.

Paul was furious. He was _not_ going to let Honchkrow fall so easily to an Ice-type weakness again like it did against Byron. "Get back up in the air and use Aerial Ace, come on!"

It would be an effective for-sure hit for Paul to score, at least. Abomasnow was knocked back into a pillar of ice due to the force behind Honchkrow's strike. It too had no desire to lose; it was already on a streak as it was with Byron's battle and the final Contest battle.

"Now that it's in close range, use Ice Punch, Abomasnow!" Candice instructed, very analytical of the battle schematics at this point. Honchkrow was not nearly the tank that Torterra was, so she knew it could be taken out in three hits if she played her cards right. Paul was so dazed and controlled by his fury that he forgot to tell Honchkrow to dodge the attack… it very well could have, but Ice Punch connected… _that_ sent the Big Boss Pokémon straight to the ground.

Paul couldn't believe what he was seeing. "Honchkrow…"

"Wrap it up with Blizzard!" was Candice's final command for this round, and with Honchkrow in such a weakened state, there was nothing it could do but take the ice. It attempted to fly out of it, but that resulted in Honchkrow becoming completely frozen in a block of ice in midair.

Of course, due to the laws of gravity, that chunk of ice fell back to the field and shattered, revealing a very knocked-out Honchkrow.

"Honchkrow is unable to battle!" shouted Mr. Honcho. "The winner is Abomasnow!"

Candice was right; Honchkrow was taken out in approximately three hits. And the Gym Leader knew she was right… she was proving to Paul here and now that he was not truly ready yet to face her. The only way to get that through the head of one as stubborn as Paul was to soundly sweep him in battle to prove it.

Silently, Paul recalled Honchkrow back to its Pokéball. He was definitely on edge at this point; he had lost two Pokémon within just a few hits… while Candice's Abomasnow remained standing in relatively good health. It was only then that Paul started to think that charging into this Gym Battle in his weakened state with no strategy and type disadvantages across his team _probably_ wasn't the right move to make.

Quite simply, he had let himself be controlled by his raw emotions. His hatred for Conway and Ash were largely why he was doing it this way in the first place. Then there was his father… that in itself was a complex mess of mixed emotions. But Paul was still so weak, yet still so determined to prove that _nothing_ was wrong with him… that he _wasn't_ sick like his mother was…

He had no business being here now. But it was too late to back out, in Paul's opinion. There was still a slim chance he could pull this off…

"Still want more?" Candice challenged. "Because I'll bet you that I can take out your next Pokémon in _two_ hits!"

There was a pattern of ridicule Candice was enforcing here for Paul's own good. By defeating him in the most embarrassing manner possible, she would get him to wake up and realize the error of his ways. She could tell just by looking at the young man that he had a strong fighting spirit, and therefore a strong team… but he was understandably drained by his journey to get here and he refused to admit that. This here was Candice's way of tough love.

"Two hits?" Paul grumbled, taking out his next Pokéball. "Just go ahead and try! Ursaring, stand by for battle!"

An essential powerhouse to Paul's team, Ursaring was the only Pokémon _without_ a disadvantage to Ice-type attacks. And luckily for Paul, Ursaring had Fighting-type moves in its repertoire that would easily combat a fragile Ice-type… and perhaps finally defeat that Abomasnow, at least.

"You're nothing but full of surprises," Candice mused. "Not a Fire-type to be seen yet, and you're down to two… I really like your style, Paul. Everyone else who faces me is always so predictable with their choices! And that Ursaring looks strong… better brace yourself, Abomasnow! It's maximum kiai time!"

Abomasnow understood Candice's suggestion and went on the defensive, leaving itself wide open for an attack that Paul was more than happy to oblige.

"Ursaring, Hammer Arm!" Paul ordered, which had Ursaring sliding swiftly towards the Frost Tree Pokémon. Both of its arms glowed, ready to land a heavy hit on its opponent. Candice made no order, and Abomasnow took that brutal attack, definitely feeling that one. Ursaring's speed suffered as a result of using this move, but being so close to Abomasnow now made that not even matter now.

"Now, finish it off with Focus Blast!" Paul really believed this was finally the time he would score a win; when the tables would turn in his favor.

But Ursaring being this close was yet another fatal mistake.

"Use Blizzard!" Candice shouted, and with Ursaring being so close to Abomasnow and too slow to evade the attack, it got the brunt of the frigid onslaught. And, much to Paul's horror, the consequence of the closeness was Ursaring becoming completely frozen again.

Just like when it was frozen solid during Paul's match against Byron and his Steelix, which used Ice Fang at the time. That too was a fatal error that rendered Ursaring unable to battle without being able to take down a single opponent.

"How about we close the book on this match right now?" Candice taunted. "Abomasnow, use Wood Hammer!"

This was easy to do with an immobile target. With the grassy part of its massive arm, it was imbued with a glow of a light blue hue. Effortlessly, Abomasnow smashed Ursaring hard into the icy floor, leaving a massive crater in its wake. The ice surrounding Ursaring had been shattered now, but… the force was too much; Ursaring was rendered unconscious.

"Ursaring is unable to battle! Abomasnow is the winner!" came Mr. Honcho's confirmation.

Once again, Candice was right. The third match was over in just two hits. Paul silently recalled Ursaring shortly afterward, still struggling to believe that this wasn't just some sort of nightmare instead.

"I think you know what's coming next," Candice teased. "You can guess, right?"

Paul really didn't feel like speaking at a time like this, but he very well knew what she meant. And he couldn't help but notice that her Abomasnow was quietly suffering a bit of recoil damage from using Wood Hammer. That made him smirk; with his last Pokémon, he would at least be able to take down that Abomasnow.

"You're going to take out my last Pokémon in _one_ hit?" he assumed.

"You bet!" the Gym Leader confirmed. "Abomasnow's still got some spunk! It's just gonna take some real good timing!"

Paul shook his head. "Good luck with that. Your Abomasnow must be running on empty by now."

"Underestimating my Pokémon is a mistake you'll live to regret," Candice warned, though still with a smile and a playful tone to her voice. "Go ahead and hit me with your best shot."

"Fine," Paul grunted, sending out his final Pokéball. "Gliscor, stand by for battle…!"

Candice couldn't help it. She really, really could not understand what Paul was going for here, unless he had just flat-out assumed that she was a low-rate Gym Leader who could be defeated even with her own advantages. But Paul had never said nor insinuated such a thing, and yet…

"Without a doubt, you're my most unpredictable competitor so far," she admitted, scratching her head. "Ground and Flying? That's…"

"Doubly weak to Ice; I _know_," Paul replied, still sounding bitter over his inevitable loss. "Don't think I didn't come prepared. Now, Gliscor! Attack with X-Scissor!"

As Gliscor flew towards its opponent, ready to mark it with an X-shaped slash, Candice nodded in approval. "Bug-type move, huh. We can take it, Abomasnow! We're gonna need a maximum power kiai to do this in one hit, you know!"

But of course it wasn't going to be _that_ difficult, as Gliscor was doubly weak to its specialty element. Still, Abomasnow was struggling to continue enduring Paul's powerful moves. That was the other indication that made Candice recognize Paul as a seasoned competitor; he obviously put a lot of emphasis on strength and made sure to destroy every obstacle blocking his path. It was as obvious in his personality just like his battling style.

"Don't give it a chance to retaliate!" Paul ordered, purely desperate to take down this beast. "Steel Wing, let's go!"

Yet another super-effective move. Candice calmed herself, trying to time this exactly right… Abomasnow was a mere few blows from losing consciousness.

"And finish it off with Guillotine!" The end of Paul's three-part assault of desperation and rage. If that move connected, it would undoubtedly be all over for Abomasnow.

"Not so fast!" Candice interrupted. "Abomasnow, give it the best Ice Shard you can throw! Make this count!"

Once again, a priority move. Guillotine didn't even have a chance to succeed or fail before Gliscor was pummeled with the largest block of ice Abomasnow could form.

The full extent of Candice's and Abomasnow's determination to win was quite strong in the pain that Gliscor went through. Its poor position in the air left it crashing to the ground… and it didn't get back up afterwards.

Mr. Honcho made the result official: "Gliscor is unable to battle! Abomasnow is the winner, thus our victor for this battle is Gym Leader Candice!"

Those words echoed throughout Paul's mind as he suddenly looked very numb. With a blank expression on his face, he recalled Gliscor to its Pokéball. Just like with the others, Gliscor received no encouragement or compliments whatsoever. Paul felt too ashamed to even _speak_ right now, especially when he heard the victorious cries of the children who watched the whole thing.

After waving to her young fans, Candice smiled to Abomasnow. "That was some great work, Abomasnow! You really stuck it out and I'm very impressed. You've earned a good, long rest."

She recalled Abomasnow, then looking to the one who challenged her to the battle. Everything went exactly the way she said it would: Torterra went down in four hits, Honchkrow in three, Ursaring in two, and Gliscor with one.

"I know you've got to be strong to have made it all this way, Paul," she reassured. "And seeing the strength of your Pokémon, you've obviously been a trainer for a few years at least. But this was the only way to show you that just because you've got a lot of experience under your belt doesn't mean you're invincible!"

Paul could only barely look to her, but still wasn't responding. He just wanted to let her know that he was indeed listening.

"Take a few days to chill and challenge me again!" she requested. "I want to see your _real_ kiai the next time we have a battle, you got that?"

What could Paul possibly say to that? He couldn't argue a single word she said; she had just completely swept him almost effortlessly. And all this time Paul thought Candice would be so much weaker than Byron… it wasn't so often that Paul underestimated a trainer so greatly. All he wanted to do now was rest; he'd officially gone well past his limit.

… This was made even more apparent when Paul vomited out of nowhere, shocking everyone present in the arena. This was no ordinary vomit… this was _blood_.

"G-geez, you're way worse off than we thought!" Candice cried out in a panic. "Quick, we need to get him to a doctor…!"

Paul was unable to play it off as he normally would have, as the sudden blood loss made him feel extremely dizzy, and after a few moments, he lost consciousness completely. He fell to his knees, then lifelessly right over the blood he just regurgitated. Everything blacked out to Paul; his senses completely dulled.

Still, the first words that came to his mind after regaining an ounce of consciousness were none other than…

* * *

"_There's nothing wrong with me."_

Oddly enough, in his head, Paul could have sworn he had heard an unfamiliar woman's voice say those very words simultaneously with him.

He woke up in what should have been a familiar setting for him by now: a hospital. Once again, he was in a random bed in the usual garb worn by an in-patient… though since this was Snowpoint City's facility, it was a bit more advanced. More out of necessity, really, considering how treacherous it could be just outside of the city limits.

"Thank goodness… you're awake now."

At least that voice was vaguely familiar: Nurse Joy. The same one who had treated him before the Gym Battle and obviously had guilt issues for not catching onto this sooner.

"Why did you follow me here?" Paul just had to ask, confused as to how he ended up here… but at this point, it wasn't hard for him to guess. But he would never admit his own suspicions.

"I was wrong to look at this, but Chansey pointed it out and because I didn't know about this, you… came very close to dying, Paul," she explained somberly. "You vomited blood and passed out right after you lost your battle against Candice, and no one had a clue as to how or why you were in such an awful shape until I stepped in and told them. I had to, so they would know how to treat you. I'm so sorry…"

Paul had a feeling he knew what she was talking about. But even to the very final seconds of being able to do so, Paul _still_ dismissed the possibility. "What are you talking about? What did you find…?"

Nurse Joy showed her discovery directly to him. "Your test results from Doctor Dalton of Squallville. I gave him a call after you left and gave me instructions on what to do in case of a likely worst-case scenario."

"What nonsense!" Paul shot back. It was likely the rest he finally had and the painkillers he was on that even gave him the ability to bark out at someone like this. "There's _nothing _wrong with- "

"There is very much something wrong with you, Paul," Nurse Joy interrupted, glaring at him. "I know this must be hard to take, but you can't keep running away anymore. If you do, you may not survive an incident like this next time! And there _will_ be a next time, Paul!"

Paul's eyes narrowed at the assumption. "And what makes you so sure of that?"

"I read these papers," she explained. "And either you haven't or you've just deeply rooted yourself into denial, but this is it: you have to have the courage to live with this for as long as you can. Paul… the disease your mother died from was genetic. And based on a series of tests the doctor at Squallville performed… the results are matching up perfectly with your mother's from years ago."

"I…" Paul was speechless. He was never directly told this, much as it had been implied. "No, I just…"

"Your mother's disease was passed down to you since the day of your birth," Nurse Joy clarified. "I'm so sorry…"

Paul could no longer run away from the truth. He couldn't pretend it didn't exist, or that it was some strange concocted medical mumbo-jumbo to fool him into paying doctors ridiculous sums of money that he didn't have.

No… Paul was forced to acknowledge it from this day to the rest of his life… which if his mother was any example to go by, meant that Paul had roughly twenty years left. Twenty years of illness and pain.

Paul was terminally ill.

* * *

**( TBC )**


	13. Conway to the Danger Zone!

**( Notes:**

**Ouch... it's been over three months since the last chapter. That's the largest gap so far. Though it's still a far cry from how long my gaps used to be, I'm glad to have this out of the way. There were a few more real-life things that slowed down this chapter's progress; spring in general making me sick (as it always does), purchasing Pokemon SoulSilver (where I've invested 189 hours in, so... yeah), and finally getting employed after three years of failure. Not only that, but it's my first full-time job, so it's been tricky getting used to that sort of life where I have to have a "normal" sleep schedule again, but the job thing is probably what was most beneficial for the fic, as I've been able to write this chapter during my breaks at work, and thus within a week and a half, this chapter jumped from 7 pages to _41_. Funny how that worked out, right? **

**So... this chapter! A friend of mine came up with this chapter's title almost a year ago and I've been dying to use it, so I'm ecstatic that I finally have an excuse to do so. While it does largely focus on Conway's side of the story (Paul only gets two short little scenes at the beginning and end of the chapter), it feels more like _Maylene_ is the center focus of the chapter since she's a major part in the two longest segments. That's just as well, because this will be the last chapter to feature Maylene for a while. She'll appear again eventually, but the way this fic is plotted out, by the end of this chapter you'll see that there won't be much of any reason to give her a role in the story until after the full battle adaptations (which I speculate will be chapter 19). In relation to the anime, this entire chapter occurs during DP124 and DP125 (the Ping-Pong tournament and the episode where Ash, Dawn, & Brock get their Platinum outfits), so we're getting very close to _A Pyramiding Rage!_ at this point. Heh, we're coming up on the one-year anniversary of when that aired in Japan, come to think of it. I want to get started on chapter 14 very soon because that will serve as the official introduction of Barry into the storyline, as well as getting Brandon and Samuel reunited just in time for the adaptation on chapter 15. So if you were dying for some Paul material, you may come out of this disappointed, but there's a lot of Conway action plus some Team Galactic mishaps to make up for it. I don't expect Paul to have much of a role next chapter either, but the next three or four chapters after that will be very Paul-heavy in content while Conway takes a backseat to the adaptation. It's an awkward balance, but that's to be expected when Paul and Conway split up, right? But, eh. Give or take seven chapters from this point and they'll be back together; author's honor. Hope you guys enjoy the chapter and I'll try not to take so long to update next time! )

* * *

  
**

It had only been hours ago since Paul was directly confronted with the truth and was forced to accept it no matter how hard he tried to tune it out.

Though it would be stretching it to say that Paul had fully accepted it at this point. He wasn't aware of it, but Paul had just passed through the first stage of grief: denial. The Veilstone City trainer would have to be as dense as Ash Ketchum to not realize earlier what was really going on. Paul suspected something might be wrong with him ever since he first set foot into Squallville. Truthfully, his problems had started well before then, but until that point, Paul had honestly believed it was just bad luck.

His deteriorating condition recently was a cause for concern, however. Much as Paul constantly tried to shove it out of his mind and focus on other matters, a tiny cloud of doubt dwelled in the back of his mind. With the doubt soon came the _fear_; that was the element that sent Paul into denial in the first place. Not merely out of fear itself… but due to the fact that Paul hated being afraid of anything.

To him, it was a most despicable and unforgivable weakness. It was one of many reasons why he never meshed well with Chimchar, a Pokémon that had shown honest fear plainly on its face since the day the two crossed paths. Fear was a great element in why Paul loathed his father with open intensity, the irony being that his old man was the bearer of the _Brave_ Symbol. The reason for this alleged hypocrisy in Paul's eyes? That was rather complicated… but it all lied within the circumstances of his family's falling out once his mother passed on.

There was little Paul could do about resisting the fear of sharing his mother's fate; it was a perfectly normal (and especially understandable) thing to be afraid of. But once more, Paul rarely thought that "normal" behavior was acceptable. As the Pyramid King's son, he at least shared his father's view of always striving to go above and beyond. Not just as a Pokémon trainer, but also as a human being. That's where the similarities in their philosophies end, however.

All in all, it turned out that there were in fact many things in life that were simply beyond Paul's control. Paul was forced to live with the consequences of his ignorance and figure out where to go and what to do from here. But as the news was still fresh in his mind, Paul had no desire to speak to anybody at this time. While he was still in Snowpoint City's hospital, he was considered an AWOL patient, having left his bed during a rare moment where he was left alone after stabilizing and ultimately holed himself up within a bathroom stall.

It wasn't exactly the best hiding spot, but the weakened Paul's abilities were even more limited than they usually were. The drugs were likely the cause of that, good as they were at keeping Paul's pain to a minimum. Additionally, Paul was not ready to face the world yet in light of this news. The most comfortable place at this point for the young man was a small space that would drive a claustrophobic person mad; a lifeless environment so that Paul could concentrate and make sense of his current position. Still, even with the comfort of solitude, Paul shivered uncontrollably with the chilly floor and air. He propped himself up completely over a covered toilet, hugging his knees and resting his head against them. Paul was beside himself in pure anguish. Not knowing what to do only brought forth more unwanted fear. What he did know was that it would only be a matter of time before he was found and forced to come back into the real world. Paul prided himself on being decisive… but this was the one time where he found himself overwhelmed with doubt and completely without confidence. As such, making a decision… was difficult now. Paul used to not fear making the wrong choice, as long as he made the effort to stick with one rather than floating about indecisively like certain people who recently traveled by his side. A wrong choice still accomplished more than not making a choice at all, Paul thought.

For once, Paul truly feared the consequences of a wrong choice here. Being told so firmly and directly of his physical frailty shattered his very essence. If only he could get the privacy he needed in order to concentrate…

"Hey, Paul! You in there…?"

While Paul expected someone to barge into the facilities looking for him, Paul did not expect that someone to be a female… much less a familiar-sounding one.

Mainly, this was due to the fact that this was the _men's_ bathroom. The spirited Gym Leader, Candice, was either completely oblivious to her blunder or disregarded it for the sake of her priority in searching for Paul.

This was what made it obvious to Paul that the entire hospital must be looking for him now; he didn't even remember Candice coming over for a visit.

"Awfully quiet in here," Candice muttered, surveying the surroundings. "Searching thoroughly is always priority one, though. I'd better not leave a stone unturned." She specifically eyed the stalls.

Paul sighed. It was as if the gods were mocking him, seeing how often he would be met up with the very last person he wanted to speak to at the worst possible time. Ultimately, Paul found it better to ward Candice away now than having her open the door and giving her the full view of what he had become. In spite of his suffering, Paul was still able to convincingly pull off his usual rude and uncouth act. "You shouldn't be in here."

Candice gasped and turned to the stall where the voice came from. It hadn't been that long ago since the battle at Snowpoint Gym and the low-pitched voice was clearly distinguishable. "Paul…? Is that you?"

"You're looking for me, right?" Paul asked in an accusatory tone. "The whole hospital must be by now. Though that doesn't explain why you're here."

The Gym Leader had gotten word on Paul's diagnosis when she arrived, so she knew this was a situation meant to be taken seriously. "I was coming by for a visit to see how you were doing," she told him with full honesty. "What happened at Snowpoint Gym really had me worried. But just as I stepped through the doors, the staff told me you had gone missing, so I volunteered to help them find you."

"I need some time to myself," was Paul's simple explanation. "So if you wouldn't mind, don't tell anyone where I am. You see now that I'm fine… I'll return to my room when I'm ready."

Candice's expressions faltered a bit as she began to feel conflicted. Now that she knew of his condition, Paul's actions were a little easier to understand. "I'll talk with the staff on your behalf about giving you some alone-time," she assured. "But I can't just leave you here, Paul. They told me everything… about how sick you are. And I'm really sorry to hear that…"

She carefully inched closer towards the stalls in hopes of cornering her challenger, but Paul could both hear her steps and see her shadow coming towards him; he knew what Candice had in mind. "Don't come any closer!" he threatened, raising his voice dramatically.

"Ack!" Candice froze just then, startled at the viciousness of Paul's tone. There was an awkward moment of silence before the Gym Leader found her voice again. "L-Listen, Paul… let's not make this difficult, okay? How about we just…"

In spite of his physical state (not to mention being medicated), Paul was still sharp enough to formulate a plan for keeping Candice away. "No! No negotiations!" he insisted. "If you were told everything, then you know my life is already forfeit. Make one wrong move and I'll make sure my life ends by my own hands before the disease ever gets a chance."

Candice couldn't believe what she was hearing. The very mention of suicide had her mind on high alert, which made it difficult for her to stay put as Paul instructed. "Wait, _no!_ Paul, don't-… please, you've got to think this over!"

Paul smirked, not surprised how easily Candice was fooled into believing his words. After all, most threats like this were hard to disregard whether or not they were genuine. "I have been. Why else would I go through the trouble of escaping my own bed and all the way here? It's hard to pull off suicide when I'm so heavily monitored."

"You can't mean that!" Candice cried out. Now she was a little too afraid to leave the restroom. "I know this has got to be hard for you to live with, but you can't give everything up now!" She frowned. "You're too strong a person to be thinking like that…"

"And you would know, wouldn't you?" Paul snidely replied. "Don't act like you know how I feel; you're not the one who's going to die at age thirty."

This was getting too intense for Candice to handle on her own. Never before had she ever dealt with suicidal opponents. It wasn't adding up in her head why Paul would resort to this so quickly, but Candice realized it would be unwise to overthink this.

"Paul, we're trying to help you," she pleaded. "We can make the best of this, I promise! You just have to believe in us…"

"_Believe?_" Paul scoffed, having abandoned that practice years ago. "What good is that? I'm still going to die. I'm warning you, Candice: back off or this knife goes right through my throat."

Of course, there was no knife. Paul was still bluffing.

"H-how did you get a knife?" Candice wailed, looking very nervous at this point. "Don't…!"

Paul was unable to stop smirking, as he actually felt joyous to be toying with the Gym Leader that just wiped the floor with him earlier that day. "In a hospital? It's easier than you think as long as you don't get caught. Now stop asking stupid questions and do as I say."

"I-if you're serious about this," Candice stammered. "How can I be sure you won't kill yourself the second I leave?"

"Guess you'll just have to trust me," Paul slyly replied. "But I'll end it here and now if you don't leave, so you really don't have any options."

As Candice slowly backed away, an idea suddenly struck her. "No… there's another way." She brought out one of her Pokéballs and tossed it. "Sneasel, I need your help…!"

The sound of a Pokémon being released from its ball was alarming for Paul, as his first assumption was that she was going to take him back by force. "Call it back!" he barked, genuinely threatened. "This is your last warning!"

Candice had a feeling this would make Paul overreact and was quick to hush him. "It's not what you think! I'll leave, but only if my Sneasel can keep an eye on you so I know you won't try anything while I'm gone."

"Is that all?" Paul warily asked, not sure if he should go along with this. "I don't want it any closer than you are right now. If you'll concede to that, then we have a deal."

"Fine," Candice agreed, stiffly nodding her head. "But Sneasel _will_ go in there if you try to hurt yourself, alright? … I'll give you your privacy now."

It wasn't exactly what he wanted, but Paul could at least live with the compromise if he didn't have to personally deal with Candice's Sneasel. "Go ahead," he affirmed, frowning and glaring daggers at the floor where he could see the two shadows. To his relief, Candice was sticking to her word and leaving the vicinity.

He let out an exhausted sigh once he was certain that Candice was no longer in the restroom. Thinking back on it, Paul couldn't believe he actually resorted to empty suicidal threats to earn these extra few moments of solitude.

It seemed to not make much of a difference regardless, as Paul was no more collected when he was finally taken back to his room than he was when he first ran off to begin with. Candice wasn't there to witness this, but was able to at least negotiate with the doctors to give Paul a private recovery room.

Much as it helped Paul to finally have some alone time for himself, it was still going to take a couple of days for this to sink in. It would only get worse from there; Paul couldn't imagine how he was going to break this news to Reggie. He was glad to at least have gotten the birthday present out of the way, but sooner or later, he knew his brother was going to be calling every Pokémon Center in the region trying to track him down.

* * *

In the smallest of ways, luck seemed to be on Paul's side this time. Reggie had not been making any calls for the next few days, and the cause of that was… believe it or not, Maylene. The full battle that occurred on Reggie's birthday resulted in a tie. A desire to see a more conclusive result spawned a series of matches between Reggie and Maylene through the next few days, as they both gave it their all to prove their battling superiority. Maylene proved to be an extremely fierce opponent with her full party out, and Reggie knew he would not be ready to move on to the next level of his training until he could overcome Maylene. The Gym Leader was not going easy on him, either. Her burning desire to make this "birthday present" count for Reggie kept her fighting spirit strong.

After another long and drawn-out full battle, Maylene and Reggie were down to their final Pokémon: Lucario and Infernape. Reggie's starter had the type advantage, but had been intermittently in and out of the fight since it began, and therefore had sustained quite a bit of damage already. It suffered fatigue while Lucario was relatively fresh, but was willing to fight it out to the bitter end.

"This time, we're going to have a definitive winner," Maylene confidently stated. "And once this battle ends, you'll know whether or not you're ready to move on to the next level of training."

Reggie nodded, smirking. He was thankful to be gifted with natural-born strength that allowed him to hang in there this long. "I'd like to think you've got a plan for us," he mentioned, gesturing to Infernape. "Because I've got the advantage right now."

"By type alone, maybe," Maylene noted, now smirking herself. "But Infernape's been in and out of this since the beginning. Lucario's fresh. We're definitely going to outlast you."

Lucario was focused against its opponent, who was staring Lucario right in the eye. Infernape knew a good, direct Blast Burn or two could end this. It was just a matter of playing it smart, which Infernape hoped Reggie would be able to do in spite of his tired state. But Lucario had the perfect move to stop Infernape in its tracks and stall for time. Maylene was definitely going to make use of it.

"Let's not hold back, then," Reggie instructed Infernape, now determined to outlast the Gym Leader. "Infernape, Focus Blast!"

"Lucario, Aura Sphere!" Maylene was quick to counter. The moves were similar in type and execution, but while Focus Blast was easily the more powerful of the two, Aura Sphere had flawless accuracy and did not require as much downtime to charge. Before Infernape was even able to completely launch Focus Blast at its opponent, it was already met with another ball of energy crashing against it, threatening to throw both back onto Infernape.

This was a strategy that could easily make or break a competitor if it was not handled quickly. Both sources of energy clashed against each other and would eventually create a devastating explosion upon Infernape, who was trying to keep Aura Sphere at bay with the energy it had collected for Focus Blast. But at this point, Infernape's strength was failing. Reggie knew the results would be disastrous if he didn't act fast.

"Infernape, redirect the flow of the energy and make an arc!" he shouted out, not completely sure if that would get his starter out of there completely. "That should get you out of there!"

Infernape grunted as it tried out Reggie's theory. Maylene stared in awe, as she had seen similar strategies pulled off against her from past competitors who had plans for countering her Lucario's Aura Sphere. The energy was bent upwards towards the sky, forming a magnificent arc of unstable energy. With the majority of both attacks directed out of the field, Infernape attempted to break itself from the energy, only to be knocked back by a small explosion at the tail end of the arc before the energy from both attacks soared into the sky and created a much larger explosion, blinding both trainers for a short moment while the energy remnants subsided.

"That was really good," Maylene complimented, though still a tad smug. "But it looks like Infernape still sustained damage. If I had sent anything other than Aura Sphere, it might have gotten of scot free. But Aura Sphere is difficult to neutralize."

Reggie nodded cautiously, eyeing Infernape and seeing it was still able to battle, but it definitely felt that blow. "Aura Sphere can't be dodged in most cases," he remembered. "Even if I can absorb it into another attack and send it away…"

"That's the power of Aura!" Maylene exclaimed. "It's too strong to just disappear like that. By connecting to that Focus Blast, it connected to Infernape itself. There was no way you weren't going to sustain damage, Reggie."

"I'll keep that in mind in the future," Reggie assured her. "Infernape, let's try more direct attacks from now on."

As Infernape nodded to its trainer, Maylene had a serious look on her face. She didn't even need to face Lucario, as both were perfectly on the same page. "It's time, Lucario…"

Thrusting an arm forward, Reggie shouted out his next command. "Now, Close Combat!"

With its amazing speed, Infernape quickly closed the distance between itself and Lucario and proceeded to bombard it with every ounce of energy left in its body. However, Maylene smirked, knowing this to be ideal for her counterattack.

"Lucario, Bone Rush!" she commanded, watching her partner form a bone-shaped Aura-made weapon that would unleash a series of super-effective moves upon Infernape at the end of every punch and kick. Reggie frowned knowingly; that Ground-type move was the one way Lucario would be able to take out Infernape in a short amount of time. While Lucario was easily taking damage with the powerful Close Combat attack, it seemed closing in on Lucario left Reggie and Infernape not much better off than they were from a distance.

But beyond the type clashes and stamina differences, there was one other thing that gave Reggie the edge overall: rusty as he may have been recently, Reggie was the one with the most overall experience. Maylene didn't have four regions' worth of adventuring, and while she had Lucario since she was very young as a Riolu, Reggie and Infernape had eight years of experience. The wisdom and tactics Reggie developed over time simply outclassed Maylene's, and not only by age differences alone. The _real_ Reggie; the one who had been fighting before going against Brandon, would have easily defeated Maylene by now.

The fact that Maylene had Reggie on the ropes numerous times to the point where he couldn't yet score a decisive victory over her told the Breeder that he still had a long way to go before he would be able to ascend beyond his limits. But the two had been battling for a long time by now; after so many ties, it was high time to end this and determine whether or not Reggie was ready to move on.

"Stay calm!" Reggie called out to Infernape, watching his starter counter every super-effective blow with its own. The heat naturally coming from Infernape's body additionally made the situation especially uncomfortable for Lucario. Maylene was dreading the moment that Reggie was going to call for a Fire-type move… as strong as she knew he was, it was obvious that distance didn't matter at this point. Stalling with Bone Rush was all she could really do until Infernape would finally wear down. But she knew she'd have to be quick in taking Infernape out, because she was so very aware of Infernape's special ability: Blaze.

Where Paul had trouble invoking Chimchar's Blaze ability the whole time he had trained it, the elder brother had no problem at all keeping Infernape under control in spite of the rage and power that came with desperation. But to be fair, Paul was similarly able to handle the Grass-type equivalent of Blaze, which was Overgrow, in times of Torterra getting into a pinch. Though Paul wouldn't admit to it out loud and made sure to make it seem like Torterra was of no greater importance than anyone else on the team, a bond _did_ exist; had they not become so close, Torterra never would have been able to achieve the ultimate power of Frenzy Plant.

It was the Fire-type equivalent of Frenzy Plant that Maylene knew was coming; it was just a matter of when. Fighting-type moves were bad enough on Lucario… she wasn't sure how long Lucario would hold up against the flames. Maylene could already tell Lucario was already suffering with Infernape's natural heat. "Push it back, Lucario!" she instructed. "Infernape won't last long; take advantage of Bone Rush's range!"

Indeed, Maylene and Lucario were well-trained in their own way and knew how to improvise certain attacks. The energy bone Lucario continued to wield thus grew longer, giving Lucario a bit of space as Infernape was pushed back considerably. Upon seeing Infernape's flames burst dramatically after a fierce screech from it, Reggie knew this was the pivotal moment: Blast Burn by itself was immensely powerful. Charged up even further with Blaze made Blast Burn something that would easily be too much for Lucario. The risk to this move was one Reggie was all too familiar with: Infernape would be rendered immobile and helpless for a period of time once this was executed. As this battle depended on the brutal strength and speed aspects of the Pokémon… not to mention Infernape simply did not have the time to spare on being forced to rest, it was all but a certainty that if Blast Burn missed or failed to knock out Lucario here and now that the victory would be Maylene's.

The time seemed right; Reggie had a natural talent of being able to tell when a Pokémon was hanging by a thread. He had to be absolutely sure that Blast Burn would finish the job, which is why he held back on it until now. Infernape smirked at Lucario while simply taking the Bone Rush blows; Maylene's connection with Lucario alerted both Gym Leader and Pokémon as to what was forthcoming.

"Uh-oh…!" Maylene gulped. Getting Lucario in too close would end it for sure, and after a certain amount of distance, Bone Rush was no longer feasible. Other than dodging, Maylene had no idea how she would counter an attack like this, and even then… Blast Burn was extremely difficult to dodge. She had nothing but hope and luck to bank on.

"Infernape, it's time!" Reggie announced; there was no room left for any doubt to be had. His stance was valiant and focused… there was no question that he knew what he was doing.

Infernape's flames burst from its head and tail as it glowed with a red hue. The power it was about to unleash would be unreal.

"Get ready, Lucario," Maylene warned, really having nothing more than that to offer her partner that it wouldn't already know.

All charged up, Infernape gestured to Reggie to show its readiness. Pumping a fist in the air, Reggie decided to make it official. "Now, use-…"

Nothing followed that other than a rather unexpected sound…

The phone from indoors was ringing.

Everyone on the battlefield looked surprised, except for Reggie, whose immediate instinct was to rush into the house and answer the call. Upon seeing this, Maylene slumped and heaved out an exhausted sigh. "You've got to be kidding me…"

Lucario was no less exasperated while Infernape busied itself with trying to calm down. When the straits were this dire, the battle couldn't simply be resumed like this and still be realistic. The tense final moments simply couldn't be broken up by anything, lest the entire mood of the battle be ruined.

"Another draw _again_…" Maylene bemoaned, taking a seat on the ground. "And I was so sure that this time…" Would be different, she would have said if her lack of energy hadn't held her back to allow anything more than another frustrated sigh. It was true at this point; Maylene was ready to take a loss over one more tie. Even though it seemed to be all but certain doom for her and Lucario… nothing could be proven until it actually happened.

Reggie was just as frustrated over the ordeal; he was more eager than anyone to see this battle's outcome. He too knew the battle couldn't really be picked up at this point. Still, he shoved annoyance to the side for professionalism's sake and brought out a smile as he answered the call.

A young male trainer was on the receiving end, no older than Reggie's little brother. "Oh, Reggie! I'm glad you're around… usually you're real prompt with the phone, y'know?"

It was hard for Reggie not to crack a very nervous grin at that remark. "Yeah… sorry about that; I was outside, so it took a little longer than usual…"

Now that his mindset was back to his natural ways, the perceptive Reggie blinked in surprise as he recognized this caller: one of his customers. "Wait, now I remember! Alex, right? You and your family went vacationing in the Hoenn region…"

Alex nodded. "Yup, that's me. It was awesome and a real change of scenery. Thanks again for agreeing to take care of my Sunkern while we were gone."

"You made the right choice," Reggie assured him. "Snowpoint City is no place to leave a baby Grass-type unattended. So you're ready to pick the little guy up?"

"Actually…" The hesitance in Alex's voice did not bode well for Reggie, and he could tell that immediately. "It turns out that we had a huge blizzard overnight and now I'm sort of trapped in the house. It may be a while before we can get ourselves shoveled out, so could you maybe…?"

Reggie blinked. Snowpoint City residents were used to this kind of weather; if it was a serious case for _them_… "You mean…" He pointed to himself. "Me?"

"If it wouldn't trouble you," Alex requested. "They're getting the roads cleaned up a lot faster than the neighborhoods, so I don't think you'll have any trouble getting up here and dropping Sunkern off at the Pokémon Center. That's usually the place they clear out first…"

Though Reggie had delivered Pokémon to their trainers personally before, this was still a tall order. It would take a few days, even by car, to reach Snowpoint City from Veilstone, especially if the weather wasn't cooperating. This was something that would undoubtedly blow away at least a week's worth of training he could get in at home.

But what was Reggie going to do, turn the kid down? Paul's had even crazier requests before… and Reggie simply couldn't neglect his duties when he was needed the most. Sure, they have been taking a backseat to the training so far… but this was not something Maylene would be able to do in Reggie's place. And he wasn't going to force the poor kid to struggle all the way down the mountain by himself… no, once again, Reggie had to set his training aside for a greater purpose.

"Then don't worry about it," Reggie cheerfully accepted. "I'll head off right now so you can get your Pokémon back as soon as possible. Sunkern's missed you terribly as it is."

Even though Reggie knew he was making the right choice, he still felt a little bad. He knew his father likely would have urged the kid to go through the trouble of getting it back himself… but Reggie was better than that. He decided he would just have to make up for the loss of time by training even harder once he got back. Most of all, he just hoped Maylene would be able to take care of the place completely by herself.

"I really appreciate it, Reggie," Alex thanked, bowing his head. "I'll look forward to hearing back from you! Just be careful, okay?"

"Of course, of course," Reggie said with a laugh, waving off the concern. "Like I said, there's nothing to be worried about. I'll let you know when I make it up there."

"Good luck, then! Bye!" And thus the call ended. It slowly sank into Reggie what he just agreed to… and he really hated to inconvenience Maylene by making her take on both full-time Breeder and Gym Leader duties, but he honestly didn't know who else he could trust the place with. Thankfully, she had been learning a lot by watching his example… a little faith was all that was needed.

Reggie stepped outside again, immediately regretful when he was faced with an exhausted Maylene still sitting on the ground, Lucario forcing itself to meditate, and Infernape still antsy from all that pent-up energy. By taking that call, he also caused yet another indecisive result in battle. It hurt even more when Maylene spoke up…

"It's alright, Reggie, really," she promised, still a bit breathless. "We can just try again tomorrow. I know you can't just ignore calls like that, but I think next time we can-…"

"Maylene," Reggie gently interceded. "It's going to be a while before there's a "next time". I'm sorry."

That was not the kind of response Maylene expected; it actually worried her to see such a somber look on her friend's face. "Reggie, what happened?" she asked, desperate to know. "If it's something serious, by all means…!"

"It's not exactly… serious," Reggie admitted. "But it's going to require me to leave town for a few days. And I know you'll say that you'll do it in my place, but this is really something only I can do."

"What are you talking about?" Maylene inquired, knowing Reggie must have a reason for assuming right off the bat that she couldn't pull something off for him. "Just go ahead and say it."

"There's a kid's Pokémon I've been taking care of while he and his family vacationed in Hoenn. Turns out they just recently got back… and now he's snowed in, but he's unable to pick up his Sunkern on his own," he explained, still with a look of guilt on his face. "I've done deliveries before, but never this far from home, really… the kid lives in Snowpoint City."

Maylene nodded. "I can see why you'd do that… but Reggie, that's going to cut into your schedule and I promised that I would cover for you…"

"The fact of the matter is, Maylene, that you're too young to drive," Reggie pointed out almost humorously. "And there's no way I'm letting you go by foot. It took quite a bargain just so I could let Paul go. And you have to remember what I've been saying…"

Maylene uneasily shrugged. "You've been saying a lot lately…"

"True," Reggie agreed. "But I even told dad this… that whether or not I beat him in battle, I'm going back to my life the way it is now. For something like this, I'm still always a Breeder before a Trainer nowadays… and remember what I said before my birthday?"

"That reaching adulthood means you have to grow up and make certain sacrifices for the greater good," she paraphrased, still getting the general message. She understood why Reggie wouldn't let her go on such a dangerous journey… it was a bit flattering, actually, but still frustrating knowing how long she would have to wait before they could battle again. "I get it… you need me to take care of things here while you're gone, right?"

Reggie nodded. "That's what you signed up for. You've just had my help up until this point. But at this stage, I think you're ready to handle it all by yourself."

"Of course!" Maylene agreed. "I assumed I would be doing that from the very beginning until the accident… don't worry, I can do the job."

"I just hope business doesn't get too heavy on both ends," Reggie said, clearly worried about worst-case scenarios in all areas. "It won't be easy being a Breeder _and_ Gym Leader full-time. If there was another way…"

Maylene just waved off the concern. "Hey, I've been getting stronger all this time, too! And getting used to the housework like this… I'm sure I can juggle the two jobs around and perform to both your standards and mine."

It was hard to try and tell Maylene otherwise; Reggie knew there was no other choice. "I promise we'll have our decisive battle once I get back."

"You may get rusty if you go that long without training," Maylene mumbled, staring at the ground. "You were so strong today… and I really think you would have won. You would have proved yourself worthy of advancing to the next level… and this could set you back more than you think."

"I'll take every opportunity I can to make sure my team stays sharp during the trip," Reggie assured her. "That's why I'm taking them all with me. At least that's six less mouths for you to feed, right?"

Maylene nodded. "You may need them along the way if it's going to be a rough ride. Besides, you deserve some company for such a long trip. But I'll hold down the fort while you're gone!" After a cheesy salute, she then looked inquisitive. "Uh… when exactly are you leaving?"

"Today," Reggie responded, promptly recalling Infernape back into its Pokéball. "As soon as possible, really, so I'm going to start packing up right now."

Maylene was surprised at first, but knew why Reggie was ready to quickly get this over with. "Well, let me at least help out with that so you can get on the road quicker," she offered, to which Reggie nodded in response. As he walked back into the house, Maylene stood up and looked tiredly down at Lucario.

"Even if it won't be for that long, it'll feel lonely without him around here," she admitted, though it wasn't like she needed to tell Lucario this. Lucario knew all too well about the deep feelings its trainer held for Reggie. Suddenly, Maylene's stomach started to grumble, which made her blush.

"I'm not sure what I'll miss more… him or his food!"

It was adjustment everyone had to make, but at least it was just temporary.

* * *

Saturn was so grateful that Conway's parents were… lacking in parenting skills, so to speak. Any reasonable parent would have tried to find out where their son would be after a week or more of no contact, but the fact that Conway's mother and father were so inattentive was truly a blessing for the Galactic Commander. Conway's older sister was less so… but loathed him so much that she was glad to have not heard from him in so long. She _really_ did not appreciate being dissed on live national television by him.

Before Saturn knew it, a week had passed since Mars informed him of his cousin's apparent demise and it was time to check on his group of back-up men outsourced from Team Galactic. By now they would have had plenty of time to scour Route 216 from top to bottom to remove all traces of the Team Galactic helicopter from the scene of the crime and found his cousin's body. He promptly gave them a call right on schedule.

"It's been exactly a week now; the week in which you were tasked to clear out the crime scene on Route 216," Saturn informed them. "What is your status?"

"All remains of the helicopter have been destroyed and removed from the premises as you requested," came the answer of the head of the contracted men to clean up Team Galactic's mess. "Unfortunately, we never found a body that matched the description you gave us. I assure you our search was very thorough."

To have things not completely go Saturn's way was frustrating at best. "You're absolutely certain all of your men knew exactly who to find? I'm having trouble believing that you honestly failed to find a corpse in a week's time in a concentrated area."

"Route 216 isn't exactly so straight and narrow as you believe it to be," the man challenged. "Getting rid of the helicopter was a relatively simple task, so you have my word that we put forth all our effort into finding that body."

"You're all _worthless_," Saturn spat. "Absolute trash… such reputable men as yourselves only getting your job half-done!"

"We did everything in our power," was the tired response given to Saturn. "At this point, I would say the body may have been discovered by someone else prior to our search… or possibly a Pokémon, in which case I highly doubt there's much of anything left _to_ find."

Saturn's eyes narrowed; while not having a dead body to go with, the hypothesis did give him an idea. "The wildlife indigenous to that area… I would not put that out of the question."

"If I may, sir," the man interjected. "Even with the job only "half-done" as you claim, the most important part that _was_ accomplished was remaining all traces of Team Galactic having ever been in this area. There's nothing left for you to worry about in regards to your organization."

That much was true. Saturn was much more concerned with getting the blood off Team Galactic's hands than actually finding his cousin's body. "Your failure has still caused me an inconvenience, so do not expect your payment in full. I will commend you for keeping your priorities straight, at the very least. But I highly suggest hiring more competent men in the near future."

"Then we are dismissed from the job?"

Reluctantly, Saturn sighed. "It would be a waste of time and money at this point to keep going if what you say is true. But something you said has given me an idea how to get around that minor problem, so I will deal with that accordingly. But I reiterate: I expected perfection from your men. Therefore I refuse to pay you the amount I originally set. I strongly urge you to not press the matter; you will regret it, and that I can assure you."

"My men will be punished as I deem adequate," the mysterious man promised. "But you are fortunate to have such a large organization to hide behind on your own ungrateful behalf."

To that, Saturn merely scoffed. "I will not resort to bickering with you. I will have your check delivered by the end of the day, but now I need to make preparations to make up for your ineptitude. This call is over."

Saturn promptly slammed his cell phone shut, grumbling to himself. He soon realized that he did not work hard enough in securing his privacy, as he soon heard a familiar, feminine giggle coming from behind him.

"So, what're you gonna do?" the woman teased, revealing herself to be Mars, of course. "Call me nosy all you want, but you're just plain stupid to do things like this while I'm on break."

"I thought you had no interest in pursuing this any further," Saturn said to her, clearly annoyed while walking back to his station. "But thankfully, I have no need for you any longer. Well, that's partially true."

"Huh?" Mars paused, blinking. "What are you talking about?"

Saturn smirked; how he loved getting the upper-hand on his coworkers. "Consider your little "breaks" over with, because I'm finally going to make use of all the vacation time I've accrued since my arrival. I will need that time off in order to seal the deal once and for all. You, Mars, will be the one handling my job during my absence."

Mars was of course taken aback by that. "Wait, what?"

"You deserve the extra workload, considering that very expensive pizza party you enjoyed this past week," Saturn reasoned with her in his own petty way. "While our name is in the clear over this accident, my relatives will find it rather conspicuous of me to be absent for my cousin's funeral, considering my "significance" to him."

"I doubt that Cyrus would let you off work for such _emotional_ purposes, Saturn," Mars speculated. "But then again, you're just doing it to cover your butt rather than grieve…"

Saturn nodded. "I will have to explain myself to Cyrus very soon. Right now I must create a believable story in regards to the circumstances of my cousin's death. Since I have no body to work with, I'll simply have to go with the "his remains were torn apart by wild Pokémon post-mortem" excuse as to why I'll have nothing to show for at the funeral… which I must plan myself."

"So you're going to conjure up fake "remains" if you have to?" Mars wondered out loud. "Gross… but ingenious."

"If necessary," Saturn calmly responded. "I must identify myself as one who did not witness his death, but was the closest of his kin to the area to be taken in to identify said remains. Then a forged autopsy report will explain the rest. Once that's set in motion, I'll inform my relatives of the news and insist on arranging the funeral myself."

Mars simply shrugged. "For a relative you don't care about, you sure are going out of your way to give him a proper send-off."

Saturn let out a particularly evil smirk just then. "Exactly. That's what I want them to believe… that I was so torn over his death that I wanted to honor his memory personally, since his parents would be too distraught… or simply too stupid to manage the funeral themselves."

"There's got to be a motive behind this," Mars muttered. "What's _really_ going on, Saturn?"

After a brief pause, Saturn gave her a smug reply. "Believe it or not, this stunt will aid our cause. If I sell myself to be the one most torn over Conway's death, then I can easily fool his parents into allowing his belongings to be passed down to myself. His books, his computer… annoying as the brat was, he was quite intelligent. He had a very important book that is relevant to Team Galactic's goal. Just imagine the kind of information we could find within the rest of his belongings…"

"A whole treasure trove of information for Team Galactic's benefit, huh," Mars realized. "So that's why… that little geek probably has even more information stored that would aid Team Galactic and he never would have realized it."

"Indeed," Saturn affirmed. "It isn't so much a "personal vacation"… more like an undercover assignment that will both aid us and get this issue off my back for good."

Mars gave her coworker a sly smile. "Killing two birds with one stone."

"Perhaps even three," Saturn vaguely mentioned before changing the subject slightly. "This is why you will need to take care of my department in my absence. If you attempt to sabotage me, you'll live to regret it the rest of your life, Mars."

"Oh, Saturn, you're so paranoid," Mars casually teased. "As long as I don't have do deal with your mess any longer, whatever. Now that I've met the kid, I know there's a lot of potential in your family that's just waiting to be taken advantage of."

Saturn stiffly nodded while taking out his cell phone again. "So we're understood. Now excuse me, as I need to set a few things into motion before going to Cyrus to take my temporary leave."

Mars just shrugged and waved him off; she knew enough now and had no desire to stalk him for potential blackmail any longer. "Have fun pulling one over on your family, then," she said as a farewell message. She thought perhaps she could at least agitate Jupiter a little in Saturn's absence.

Meanwhile, Saturn returned to his desk, writing out his To-Do List before dialing a number. He was disappointed to only reach the voicemail after so many rings, but collected himself for the heavy message he was about to send.

"Francine, this is your cousin, Sloan. I'm calling to regretfully inform you that Conway, your brother, was found dead in Route 216 over the past week or so. I just identified his remains… you'd probably rather not see them, but do inform your parents as soon as possible and let them know that I already have preparations for his funeral underway. You need not do anything more than grieve; I shall be the head of his proper sendoff. I will arrive at your house tomorrow so that we may discuss this further, and I will do whatever I can to ease the pain of this most unfortunate loss. Until then, dear cousin. Stay strong."

It was a message that Franny would indeed get later on once she checked her voicemail. And even though she openly admitted her hatred for her brother… she found herself tearing up as she listened to the entire message over and over again, finding it hard to stand all of a sudden. She slumped against a nearby wall, shaking while feeling an empty, horrible feeling in her gut.

Her brother died before the two could ever reach even ground… the last time Franny saw her brother alive was on television, where he loudly proclaimed his hatred for her all across the Sinnoh region. Still, even Conway's dysfunctional family seemed to have the ability to grieve.

And soon enough, the message spread through Conway's family across Veilstone City. It was mentioned in the local news once Saturn orchestrated the perfect report on the alleged tragedy.

As a result, Conway was not dead just to Paul… he was dead to the majority of the Sinnoh region. This would prove to cause complications when Conway, still very alive, finally returned to Veilstone City after a lengthy trip down the mountain range.

* * *

"Home sweet home," Conway bitterly muttered as he crossed the city limits in the dead of night. Once he was out of the mountains, Conway was able to travel easily even without the aid of daylight. Of course, Conway couldn't even be graced with a beautiful night sky tonight; it was completely covered by clouds. Not a soul seemed to be in sight outdoors… not that Conway wanted to make himself obvious; he was still understandably paranoid about the men who were hunting him down further up north. His logical conclusion was that they very well might know where his city of origin is and try to hunt him down there. Needless to say, Conway was being very discreet about his return.

"Good thing I've already decided on a path now," he realized. "The last place I want to be is home, really… but it'll just be temporary… no more than a day or two."

He then saw Reggie's house in plain sight; it was a place Conway had to pass by in order to return to his neighborhood, but he suddenly felt conflicted.

"Reggie deserves to know," Conway muttered. "That I failed… and I couldn't look after Paul anymore. I'm sure he's doing just fine on his own, but I broke the agreement I made with Reggie. And being the utmost gentleman, I must dutifully apologize for my ineptitude."

It had been such a long walk home… Conway wasn't sure where to head first, but a sudden strike of lightning followed by an immediate downpour made Conway cry out like a frightened child and ran for shelter to the nearest location of his choices: Reggie's house.

He immediately opened Reggie's door (conveniently unlocked already) and slammed it shut after he was fully inside. Though fairly wet, Conway was relatively fine… he simply had a phobia for sudden disturbances such as thunderstorms. Not to mention the paranoia of being hit by lighting one day, possibly made worse after meeting Reggie who _was_ struck by lightning before…

After a few moments of heaving for air, Conway's belongings slid off his body and to the floor. Though Paul's family lacked the wealth that Conway's possessed, Conway couldn't help but feel comforted within this residence. Reggie went out of his way to make his simple home a pleasant one, whereas Conway's house always came off as virtually soulless.

"Sorry I broke in, Reggie…" he panted. "It was just a… random impulse."

He blinked after a moment of silence and got a good look around the house, realizing there was no Reggie to be seen.

"How odd," Conway remarked. "Where could he have…?"

It wasn't long before he did notice there was another living person in the house. Maylene was in the backyard, gathering the baby Pokémon indoors as the storm hit. But she heard the slam of the door on the other side of the house and immediately felt tense.

Once the Pokémon were secured, Maylene rushed inside the house to immediately confront who just came in unannounced. She was stern, strong, and ready to fight if it was a burglar, but she stopped dead in her tracks when she found quite a recognizable person standing confusedly by the front door.

Conway was not surprised to see Maylene still here, but couldn't comprehend her silence, nor the expression of abject fear on her face.

"N-no… no way…" Maylene whispered. "I'm seeing things… or maybe…"

"Pardon…?" Conway didn't expect this sort of tension the moment he stepped in. But within the next second or two, all would become clear as Maylene shrieked in pure and utter terror.

"_GHOOOOOOST!"_

"Ghost?" It was Conway's mild phobia of Ghost-type Pokémon (or maybe _just_ Dusknoir… or the little girl who nearly dragged him to the underworld during the week of summer school) that prevented him from immediately realizing Maylene was talking about _him_. Looking just as freaked out as Maylene, Conway looked left and right, too nervous to move any one way. "Where? When? How?"

Maylene screamed again; her feet quick to move, yet she couldn't get herself to go anywhere. "Oh no, why _now?_ How could I get Reggie's house possessed? I'm a _Fighting -type_ expert; I can't do a _thing_ against ghosts! What am I gonna do…?"

"Where is it, where is it?" Conway cried out, desperate to rush to safety. "Right behind me? And you can't do _anything_ about it?"

After a short moment of crying longer, she realized the situation at hand. "Don't tell me… you don't even know?"

"What am I supposed to know?" was Conway's panicked answer. He suddenly had no desire to stay here for much longer.

There was a feeling of dread within Conway when Maylene ultimately pointed straight at him. "_You're_ the ghost! You don't even realize that you passed on?"

… And all of a sudden, Conway felt like ramming his head against the wall for not catching the implication sooner. "Wait. You think _I'm_ the ghost?"

"Don't try to trick me!" she warned, still fearful. "It figures… once I finally came to accept it, you'd come and _haunt_ me!"

"Accept _what?_" Though Conway had a bad feeling right after asking that. Like his worst nightmare had just become a reality… "How did you even come to the conclusion that I died?"

Maylene watched enough movies to come to stereotypical solutions to how to handle human ghosts. Conway was not coming off as hostile, so she decided present nearby proof in the form of a newspaper. "I saw _your name_ in the obituary section this week! It was mentioned briefly in the news… but above all else, _this_ just came in the mail the other day ago!"

She took out an envelope and pulled out a dark-colored card. "An invite to your _funeral_."

It was a complete shock to his system; for all the time Conway had to think about his situation, he never once thought that, since his cousin assumed him to be dead, that the rest of the world would jump to the same conclusion.

"It's bad enough that they didn't say a word about Paul!" Maylene cried out. "Who's to say he's not just like you, either?"

"I _would_ say that if that were the case, Paul and I would be "haunting" you together," Conway cynically speculated. "Though much as he hates me, perhaps not. Well, I can't blame you for believing in all of that… I didn't think my cousin would care enough to try and pass me off as dead to the entire world."

The Gym Leader still looked suspicious of him. "Prove you're alive, then!"

And to that, Conway blinked. "You really still think I'm a ghost… well, alright. You probably heard me slam that door. Why would I do that when I, as a ghost, could just go straight through it?"

"To get my attention!" Maylene accused. "That's not like you."

"I was _startled_ by the thunderstorm," Conway calmly explained, though clearly annoyed. "Speaking of which, if I were a ghost, I wouldn't be soaking wet right now. Water would go straight through the ectoplasm… not to mention I still have a pulse, I don't even _look_ dead, I have both a shadow and reflection… Maylene, I could go on all night. But aren't you able to sense life forms like your Lucario can?"

For all of the terror she went through just then, Maylene completely forgot that she could do that. "Ah, that's true…" It didn't take long for her to realize that there was absolutely nothing wrong with Conway as far as his aura was concerned. "Oh… goodness. Then that means…"

"You should probably get Reggie in here so he can hear all of this as well," Conway suggested. "I'd rather not go through this hysteria a second time… and I came here to speak with him anyway. I figured he would have shown himself by now after all the noise we made…"

Maylene shook her head. "Sorry, but Reggie left days ago for Snowpoint City. Not for the reason you'd think… he left just before your death reached the news. It'll be a while before he can return. I tried to see if I could call him once I learned about what happened to you, but he's on the road right now where there's bad reception. Now tell me where in the world Paul is, because that was another thing I was worried sick about having to break to Reggie once I got the chance."

"That's what I wanted to talk to him about," Conway explained, nodding. "There's a good reason why everyone thinks I'm dead… and normally, I would be, but Paul prevented that. He's fine as far as I know, but… the circumstances of the situation made it so that he refused to let me proceed any further along with him."

"So then you two…" Maylene slowly realized. "You're not traveling together anymore?"

Conway bowed his head regretfully. "I wanted to apologize to Reggie for being unable to fulfill his wishes, though I believe Paul is alright and probably reached Snowpoint City days ago. We were quite close by the time we split up…"

"Now that I think about it…" This seemed to explain something else for Maylene. "That must be why Paul kept saying you were still asleep in a hotel room or went shopping all that time when you normally joined him whenever you guys contacted us…"

"Right," Conway muttered in affirmation. "He wanted me out of his life so badly that I'm sure he didn't even want to discuss the matter with either of you over the phone. That being said… I'm sure you would like a more thorough explanation as to why everyone believes me to be dead, right?"

Maylene nodded. "That would be appreciated… the sooner we get this mix-up corrected, the better."

The very idea of that immediately gave Conway bad vibes. "Maylene… before we jump the gun on anything, I'll ask that you let me explain the situation in full first."

Conway was about to rest on the couch until he felt his stomach growl with hunger, to which he just looked awkward about. "Oh… right. Traveling works up the appetite. Is there anything to eat around here?"

Even though he had just been to Reggie's house once before, he felt welcome enough here to casually make his way over to the kitchen and immediately hunt for food. Maylene groaned quietly in agony over the topic of food; it was torture for the Gym Leader and her appetite to go without Reggie's cooking.

"Um… I'm not exactly that good of a cook, I learned…" she hesitantly admitted before gesturing to the stove, where upon lied a messy pot of some diabolical concoction of something that might have resembled a failed attempt at "dinner" a few days ago. Since then, Maylene relied completely on ordering out. "Reggie made sure the kitchen was well-stocked with stuff to _make_ dinner before he left, but I overestimated my ability to do it right by myself. You must be exhausted, so I'll just order a-…"

"Actually, it would be my pleasure to whip up a dinner," Conway offered as he immediately started taking ingredients out. "Busying myself like this will help me to remain calm." The eerie smirk on Conway's face again made Maylene feel a bit uncomfortable, but she figured a genius like him would likely not set the kitchen on fire.

It was her dreadful withdrawal of Reggie's cooking that really made her allow Conway to have complete freedom in the kitchen.

Over the dinner table (something Conway wasn't quite used to), the two had dinner while Conway gave Maylene the full exposition of the dreadful things that happened that fateful day after the events of the Plumeria Contest. He spared no details (aside from one certain part that Conway would never be able to live down), giving the young Gym Leader every bit of his point of view in addition to what he could make of Paul's. Needless to say, Maylene was on edge during most of the story, particularly right when Conway described Mars' appearance. Something sounded all too familiar about the uniform…

"That's just… _awful_," was Maylene's first reaction once Conway finished detailing the remainder of his misadventures on Route 216 after splitting up from Paul. "I always knew Paul was cruel, but he's a monster for leaving you there like that!"

"At this point, it's not a detail I'm so willing to challenge," Conway glumly admitted. How he _wished_ his main concern would be something that was now so trivial. "True, it was a lot to take in for me at that time… but I suppose for someone like Paul who had such a hard time trusting me, it was disturbing for him to realize that my family is not only connected to some evil organization… which makes me look bad already, but I betrayed his trust by giving in to Mars. The details of which I'd… rather not disclose. Let's just say I didn't really have a choice."

That was the most mature and level-headed way Conway was able to interpret that dark time. For once, he didn't whine or cry about it, nor did he mope. He still felt just as awful as ever about it, but the events that happened afterward and Conway's resolve had effectively hardened him. Not to mention this turned out to be a much bigger disaster than even he expected.

Maylene frowned when Conway mentioned Mars again, recalling the eerily familiar details about her. "So you still don't know who Mars and your cousin are really working for?"

"I was so blind," Conway self-criticized. "Thinking my cousin was so great and all, it didn't hit me at the time how suspicious she really looked. Paul _was_ right about my tendency to be a gullible fool…"

"Don't be so hard on yourself," Maylene pleaded. "I want to help you figure this out. You won't get far in your plans if you can't figure out where he is or who he's working for."

Conway sighed, knowing Maylene had a point. Charging in recklessly without any knowledge about his cousin was a one-way ticket to failure. "You seemed intrigued when I described Mars, Maylene."

"I've got a suspect in mind already in regards to what kind of organization your cousin's really involved with," Maylene noted ominously. "White and gray suits… the strange, futuristic style…"

"The giant yellow "G" emblazoned on so blatantly…" Conway added tiredly, which in turn made Maylene's expressions darken considerably.

"It _must_ be them," she decided. "Conway… that woman and your cousin… they're affiliated with Team Galactic."

Maylene seemed certain of it; for once, she did not doubt her own intuition. She had every reason to suspect that organization had something to do with this; the Gym Leader knew from experience just how twisted such villains really were. Nothing else so perfectly matched Conway's description…

"Huh?" Conway was taken aback, as he apparently wasn't even close to coming to the same conclusion.

"Remember a while back when the power throughout Veilstone City was completely cut that one night?" she asked. With Conway residing in this city as well, had he been there at the time, he would have likely remembered the incident.

It only took a moment for Conway to think about it. "That rings a bell… yeah!" He sounded angry just then. "I was so close to installing some new software that night that took well over an hour to load! I had to do it all over again because of that cut in the power!"

"That was Team Galactic," she informed him. "At that time, Ash and the others were with us. I came with them to investigate… Reggie was even involved, and then Officer Jenny identified them. This "Mars" you're talking about wasn't there as far as I could see, but there was a commander who stood out. He had a really smug attitude and blue hair."

That detail in particular worried Conway. "Blue…"

"And he had a Toxicroak," Maylene added. "While the grunts all had Golbat, their leader gave us a lot of trouble with his Toxicroak…"

"N-no," Conway stammered. "My… my cousin has a Toxicroak! You're saying you saw him that night!"

The glint in Maylene's eyes; her determination to see those criminals get their comeuppance… she seemed much harsher than usual, but she couldn't let this go. "That's what I believe," she admitted. "Though I can't prove it, there's really no other explanation…"

"Then Sloan's responsible for the power going out that night!" Conway cried out, wanting to deny this, but in his heart, enlightened as he had become… he was no longer blind to his cousin's methods. But it was still a lot to stomach. "Why in the world would he do that?"

"You must have not seen the news the following day," Maylene noted, knowing this incident was quickly made public after the fact. "Team Galactic was attempting to steal the meteors from the site at the center of the city. We managed to prevent that, but they got away from us. Their actions have been few and far in between since then, though I think a few weeks ago they were involved in a serious incident at Iron Island."

This was heart-breaking at best for Conway. "I idolized Sloan while he was a _criminal_ all this time?" Even though he did nothing wrong, Conway couldn't help but feel immensely guilty over this.

"We may have a chance to confront him," Maylene brought up, remembering the invitation she received. "I heard that the funeral that's being arranged for you has been done so by _him_. That means he'll be there during the services…"

"When is that scheduled for, actually?" Conway wondered, curious about what his own funeral would actually be like. It was one of those things commonly thought about by others who wondered how much they really meant to their friends and loved ones.

"Tomorrow morning," Maylene answered. "We need to expose your cousin for the fraud he is, so I'll definitely attend the funeral so I can identify him."

The thought of rushing in and attempting to conquer Sloan at the funeral still didn't sit right with Conway. He shook his head in disagreement. "You should go, but I want you to keep a low profile, Maylene. I'll go as well, but I don't plan on "crashing the party", so to speak."

Maylene frowned, wondering what was on Conway's mind now. "You've got another idea?"

"First of all, don't blow my cover," Conway instructed. "It's best that Sloan continues to believe me to be dead. I'll have a much better shot at taking him down later on."

"How do you plan on keeping him in the dark alone? Once we clear it up, he'll find out eventually…" Maylene mentioned, still not following his line of thought.

Conway looked to the side. While he had the base idea for a plan to take down his cousin, the news of his alleged death spreading was something he hadn't counted on at all. Certain plans would have to change. This lead to Conway being forced to make some very difficult decisions.

"I really should alert my family to this somehow," Conway realized. "If I was oblivious to this, then my parents definitely don't know anything about it either… oh no, and Sloan said he was soon going to recruit my sister as an "intern" at his job…"

"We can't let her be taken in by Team Galactic," Maylene immediately proclaimed. "You shouldn't even let this event happen. Go home right now and prove to your family that you're still alive!"

Though he knew Maylene's intentions were for his own benefit, Conway simply could not agree with her command. "It isn't that simple, Maylene. You have no idea how unreliable my family can be… I can't trust them with anything. I'll take down Sloan before that worst-case scenario can even happen, but in order to do that, he _can't_ know I'm still alive. My family has too many ties to this city for them to keep it confidential, not to mention they're pretty incompetent to begin with."

"Then you still want your mom, dad, and sister to think you're still dead, Conway?" Maylene asked him incredulously. "That means you can't go home! So where will you go and what will you do?"

"Maylene, I honestly don't have all of the answers for you at this time," Conway patiently informed her. "This was a very unexpected turn, so I'll have to adapt my plans accordingly tonight and see what happens at the funeral so I can look for an opening, or… or _something_."

The young Gym Leader couldn't fault Conway for not having it all planned out yet. She couldn't even begin to imagine how she would handle a situation like this. "What was your plan before you got here?" she asked.

"Relatively simple," Conway said with a shrug. "Gain more power by challenging Gyms across Sinnoh… at least enough to qualify for the Sinnoh League, and at that point I'll know I will have the strength to take Sloan down should it come down to a battle. That's why I don't wish to take immediate action. But my "death" being spread out across the region is going to make being out in public a little difficult. That's why I'll need to find a way around this while maintaining my stealth, hence why I cannot simply go around telling the people in my life that I'm alive. If my cover is blown, Sloan might track me down and make sure I actually die next time."

"It's already pretty late," Maylene pointed out, yawning. The dinner was a great relief (though Conway was not quite as talented as Reggie) and the food coma was settling in. "We ought to get as much rest as we can if you're serious about pulling this off."

Again, Conway could not bring himself to concede to Maylene's wishes. "There are a few things I need to take care of before even thinking about resting, Maylene. You should go ahead and turn in, though. There's no need for you to be awake for what I need to do."

That almost sounded _suspicious_ to Maylene. "What… exactly are you going to be doing at this hour?"

"Securing the position I'll be at during the services," Conway replied. "Where will it be held?"

"In… your house's backyard, actually," Maylene awkwardly replied. "I thought that was kind of strange place to hold a funeral, but then I remembered the reports saying that your body was never found, so I guess there's no point of going to a graveyard if there's nothing to bury…"

There was an awkward period of silence between the two as Conway processed that. It was yet another unexpected kink in his plans. "This could either benefit me or prove to be disastrous. That leaves no room for error in this mission."

"A… a mission?" Maylene echoed. "Just what are you going to be doing there?"

Conway simply waved her off dismissively. "You let me worry about the details, Maylene. For now, you should get in as much sleep as you can. By the time you wake up, you'll find a list of instructions I'll wish for you to follow if you want us to succeed in this little espionage expedition."

"Espionage?" Again, it took Maylene a moment to comprehend Conway's strategy. "You're going to spy…?"

A smirk crept its way into Conway's expression. "Like I said, my dear. Details; my prerogative. Getting a good night's rest is yours, because I'll require you to be alert in order to carry out the instructions I'll be leaving you."

"But…"

Conway stood up from his chair at the table, placed his empty plates into the kitchen sink, and started to head upstairs, ignoring Maylene's concerns. "You think Reggie will mind if I raid Paul's closet just for tonight?" he asked. "I'm going to need a disguise so I can get the components that I need."

"Uh…" Maylene honestly had no idea, though Reggie was about the most agreeable person on the planet, so more likely than not… "I suppose he wouldn't." She was really beginning to wonder what Conway had in mind at this point.

"Splendid," Conway eagerly remarked, helping himself to Paul's room. Maylene looked on helplessly as she was about to enter Reggie's bedroom, assuming Conway would be occupying Paul's for the night at some point.

"Guess there's no changing your mind, is there?" Maylene wondered out loud. With no response from Conway, she shouted to him just before he shut the door to Paul's bedroom. _"Be careful!"_

"Will do!" was Conway's actual response, muffled due to the door being closed, but Maylene was able to make it out well enough. She sighed before resigning herself to her designated bedroom.

"I think I've got a headache," she muttered to herself before officially turning in for the night.

Conway, meanwhile, had no intention of going to bed anytime soon. He was busy making a perfect combination of clothes that would conceal his identity to the general public. Experimenting with various different styles, Conway sighed to himself a little; he was eerily good at holding up that calm and confident front against Maylene. The truth was that his head was hurting just as much, if not more than the Gym Leader's with everything that came at him tonight. While there was a semblance of an adapting plan to handling this funeral of his, Conway was going purely by instinct when it came to what steps to take in order to make it all work in his mind. He didn't have the time to look over absolutely everything from a logical standpoint; this was a point in his life where he just needed a bit of self-confidence in his abilities in order to keep himself safe. It was hard to find that confidence after everything that happened to him, but Conway shoved aside his woes for the sole purpose of setting his hastily-made plan into motion.

"I'd better get used to this, _and_ get good at it," he said to himself glumly. "There's no telling how long I'll have to hide my identity…"

He didn't even think about how amusing it was that he was using _Paul's_ belongings for the most essential of necessities of his mission. Paul would no doubt be infuriated if he found out, but Paul was experiencing something very different at the time and was so far away from his former traveling partner now.

Interestingly, though Conway and Paul's incidents weren't very similar to each other, the most crucial detail was on both their minds at the same time: figuring out how to keep themselves alive long enough to make a difference.

* * *

As morning came, Maylene woke up very early as usual. She had prepared for this funeral ahead of time while she still believed Conway was dead and had an appropriate outfit ready to put on. She gave herself enough time to tend to the Pokémon and put up the notice that both the daycare center and temporary "Gym" were closed for the day due to the funeral.

Upon crossing by the dinner table, Maylene spotted a note along with some small, unfamiliar technological devices. As Conway promised, he left very specific instructions for Maylene to follow once she arrived at his house, and most measures seemed to be very time-sensitive, so the Gym Leader didn't have much time to think too hard about where Conway was going with these measures. Sure enough, though, he was completely absent from the house. Maylene sighed, shrugged, and took everything that Conway left for her, being sure to keep it all well hidden while she followed the first written instruction:

_ 1. The funeral starts approximately at 9:00 AM. Take everything with you and make sure it's hidden from plain sight. Arrive at my residence no later than 7:30; you'll receive more specific instructions from me personally until my family wakes up and the guests start to arrive._

The following instructions were going to be long-winded if Conway had to explain them, and he knew somewhere down the road he would have to explain them to Maylene. Therefore, looking at them ahead of time wouldn't allow Maylene to make much sense of what needed to be done afterwards.

Knowing there was no time for dawdling, Maylene actively attempted to find Conway the second his house came within her viewpoint. Unsurprisingly, he seemed to have hidden himself as he was not standing out in the open at all… but even Maylene knew that would be a dumb and risky idea. Knocking on the front door of the house obviously wasn't the answer…

"Ah, there you are. Good timing, Maylene."

That was Conway's voice. He still couldn't be seen, but the direction his voice came from alerted Maylene to a giant tree that grew in the backyard of Conway's house. The entrance to the backyard was protected by a tall fence, but the immensely huge tree – the same one Conway and Paul used to easily get outdoors the night the latter came over to spend the night – was positioned in such a way that someone physically inclined might be able to access the backyard by jumping up and climbing it. It appeared the voice was coming from that direction, but Maylene had a hard time imagining how Conway would have managed to pull himself up there.

"Are you really all the way up there?" Maylene whispered back, knowing it would quickly raise attention to the outside world by speaking up this early in the morning.

"It's easier than you'd think," he replied. The tree was very good about hiding every part of his body. "I know it would be no small feat for you, so go ahead and help yourself up. Just be careful."

Though cynical, Maylene conceded to this, though not without muttering a cynical "No kidding; I'd really be giving myself away if people knew I was climbing up here…"

"Luckily, I've been monitoring what's been going on indoors for quite a while now, and it appears that no one has actually woken up yet," Conway reported, pausing as he saw Maylene effortlessly leap her way up to Conway's level in a very short amount of time. "Oh, you even dressed for the part. Good thinking, Maylene."

Maylene looked awkward at that statement. "Er, my mom picked this out for me. That was before you even came back, Conway."

Slightly embarrassed to be this careless in his thoughts already, Conway simply smiled and nodded. "Oh, of course. You wouldn't have had time to improvise this well…"

"I shouldn't stay up here long," Maylene informed him. "Your family's going to wake up at some point. Have you even gotten any sleep…?"

To that, Conway let out a yawn, which was already a bad sign to Maylene. "A little," he said. "But by the time I was finished with everything, I was closer to here than Reggie's, so I've been camping out in this tree. Don't worry; it's not the first time I've done so."

"And what have you found out?" the Gym Leader asked. "Because a lot of these instructions are incredibly vague…"

"I couldn't be too specific before leaving the house," Conway informed her. "And once I left, I didn't have time to come back. You'll probably want to give these modified ones a look-over before too long," he advised before switching out her first sheet of instructions and replacing it with something a little more detailed. "They might find it conspicuous of you to be reading something during the ceremony."

Maylene gulped as she skimmed past the modifications. "You want me to memorize all this now?"

"By all means, if you can reference it in a subtle way, I suggest you do so," Conway advised. "I would say your main concern is to maintain the acting role of a grieving Gym Leader, but you've got a natural flair for being shy and meek during times like this, so you only need to probably at least pretend to cry when the others do."

That was a very odd assessment Conway just made, Maylene thought."I'm not even going to ask… but yes, naturally I'll act as if yesterday never happened."

"Thankfully, as long as I hold my position, I should have no risk of being seen by anybody," Conway informed her. "This tree's positioned at the top corner of the right close by this house. It's big enough and thankfully it's summer, so as long as I remain quiet, there's virtually no risk of being discovered from up here."

"So you're basically saying to worry about sticking to the plan rather than what you're doing," Maylene summarized. "Fair enough. What else have you found out?"

Conway gestured over to the back yard, right over to where over a month ago, he and Paul stargazed while creating each others' strategies. The lawn was no longer bare, as there was a podium in place before several rows of fold-out chairs.

"It seems my family set things up ahead of time… probably so they could get more sleep in today," he hypothesized. "If Sloan's heading the ceremony, then he'll be the one up there doing the talking for most of it, if not the entire time. With the help of my Pokémon, I was able to bug that podium."

"Bug it?" Maylene asked, completely unfamiliar with the term. "What are you talking about?"

It wasn't much of a surprise to Conway that he would have to explain this. "I told you I intend to do a little spying. I want to keep tabs on Sloan in particular. Though this position is great for stealth, it's bad for overhearing anything he says. Those little gadgets I left on the table for you to take… those are for my ability to keep up to speed with the situation without having to ask you for updates constantly, which wouldn't work out at all for this situation."

"So if you, uh… "bugged" the podium, why did you leave me with these in the first place?" Maylene fairly asked. "I don't know all that much about technology, so I'm more likely to screw that part up than help out…"

"A good spy knows his target won't stay in one place," Conway said with a smirk. "The most important bugs are the ones I need you to attach to Sloan personally, which I'm unable to do."

While it made sense, Maylene had no concept of what she was supposed to be doing. "And how am I going to attach one of these bug things to Sloan without him noticing…?"

"You've seen that they're quite small," Conway displayed, pulling one out to show her again. "I had to leave them on the instruction sheet just so you'd see them without missing them. I'd preferably like it if you bugged his backside or shoulder rather than his arms, since he may be quick to notice it that way. I'd attempt this simply by waiting until his attention is with someone else, then just tapping him from behind and asking him where the bathroom in the house is or something."

"These things don't exactly stick on to anything, though," Maylene pointed out. "And I'm sure he'd notice if I tried slipping it into his pocket or something…"

Conway gleefully held up the solution with a single index finger, though Maylene could barely make it out due to the lack of daylight and being covered in the tree. "The most effective remedy is a sticker. A small, round, transparent one so that it can go unnoticed without relying on the color of his suit, which I haven't a clue of what it'll be. These stickers are double-sided, so they'll be easy to keep on your finger and easy to leave off on him."

Maylene understood this much and nodded. "Got it. So you just need me to bug him?"

"And whatever car he comes from," Conway added. "It might be easiest to do that on your way out. The next main thing you need to do is when you are granted access to the house upon asking for the location of the bathroom."

"There are… three sets of directions here," Maylene stated uneasily, reviewing her instruction sheet. "Why is that?"

"My house has three bathrooms," Conway replied. "One belonging to my parents, one that my sister uses, and the smallest one is mine."

Maylene frowned. "If your cousin's going to give me directions anyway, what's the point of giving me these?"

"They're directions to _my room_ from each bathroom's position," was Conway's answer… his tone darkened a bit, which was yet another element of the young man that made the Gym Leader uncomfortable. "By all means, use the bathroom time as an opportunity to review your notes as well, just so long as you reach my room and open _this_ window without being caught."

He pointed to a window that was actually very close to the two of them. "This is of the utmost importance."

These supposed flaws in Conway's plan, only to turn out to be something else entirely were beginning to take a tax on Maylene's mind (and likely her sanity as well); once again, she had another question that Conway saw coming from a mile away. "But… you could reach this from the tree yourself. Why didn't you open it?"

"I didn't want to risk getting caught breaking into the house while everyone was asleep," Conway explained. "And while it is easy for me to reach from this tree, I can't open it normally from the outside. Not without breaking it, anyway, which would definitely compromise my stealth if I resorted to that. It's important that I am able to access my room during the ceremony, Maylene."

"Why is that?" Maylene hated to keep asking questions, but she felt it was best to do it now rather than wait too long and try to figure it out for herself.

"I've developed a plan that adapts to this new situation of mine," Conway said vaguely, and kept it so. "It just so happens to involve getting access to my house one last time. I'll go into detail once we're back at Reggie's; we're running out of time."

Maylene looked around and nearly panicked, thought made sure not to accidentally fall out of the tree. "Oh no… did I waste too much time?"

"We're doing fine, actually," Conway remarked. "But before too long my parents will _have_ to wake up and attend this ceremony looking proper. They care very much about their appearances in public. I have most other places of interest bugged already; I just need you to take care of Sloan, whatever car he leaves in, and preferably my room once you access it. Just for the sake of covering all my bases."

"And act sad and fake-cry… that's really it?" Maylene asked. "You know we could bust him today… with so many people around, he might be helpless."

Conway sternly shook his head. "I may have seen my cousin's true nature now, but I would still not underestimate him. It's best to bust him with incriminating evidence rather than what everyone else will see as mere conjecture; especially my parents. That's my purpose for making sure his actions from now on will be monitored. Then when the _right_ time is at hand, my cousin won't be able to escape persecution by negotiation _or_ running away."

"You've been busy to make it this far, I can tell," Maylene noted. "Is there really nothing else I can do for you?"

"I don't plan on staying in this city much longer after today," Conway admitted. "At least Reggie's place is a safe haven for me as long as you're willing to keep this confidential…"

"Of course I will," Maylene assured, very stern about her promise. "Especially if this is for the sake of taking down Team Galactic once and for all."

This at least relieved Conway; Maylene was a very honest girl and he knew that from experience, so he knew her words were genuine. "Then our rendezvous point will be back at Reggie's house. The only other things I can think to tell you are to be sure to leave as early as you can once the ceremony ends. That will be your best chance to bug Sloan's car, and with your duties as Gym Leader, my family will easily let you slide out if you express the need. Finally… please keep an eye on my sister for me."

Maylene blinked. "Your sister?" She had heard of Franny from Conway before, but never formally met the girl…

"Much as I dislike her, I don't wish for Sloan to take advantage of her like he did with me," Conway explained, filled with resolve. "If he takes Franny away into Team Galactic, it might be impossible to reach her… and that organization will be one more member strong."

His intentions were understandable, but Maylene nodded with clear hesitance. "It wouldn't be my business to intercept their conversation since I don't really know either of them, but I'll do what I can. The thing I'm most worried about is if your cousin will recognize _me_ from the prior incident…"

"There's a chance," Conway admitted. "But he's in no position to do anything to you here. Just don't act like you're on to him and he shouldn't have any reason to deal with you unprovoked."

"Right… of course," Maylene acknowledged. What would be even more difficult than pretending to mourn for her would be to control her anger when it came to the man who already committed crimes in her city and got away with it… something she regretted to the present day. But this wasn't about her; this mission was to set Conway's plans into motion so that the Galactic commander _would_ be taken down in the future along with his comrades.

"It's almost eight," Conway reported, checking his watch. "Make good use what's left before showtime."

With a respectful nod, Maylene gave one last direct look at Conway. "Best of luck, then…"

"Just do what you do best and nothing can go wrong," Conway cheerfully reminded her. Though to Maylene, that was just it… doing what she "did best" was the _last_ thing she thought she should be doing. Still, with no more time to debate, Maylene silently nodded and slipped out of the tree and back to the ground, thankful that no one was around to see her do that. She distanced herself, though kept an eye on the house from a nearby convenience store. Maylene had just enough time to get in a good breakfast that would help her function better all around in addition to reviewing her instructions.

Conway was back to looking serious and worried at the same time once he was alone again, sighing as he heard the faintest ringing of his parents' alarm clock from within the house approximately one hour before the beginning of the ceremony. This was by far the tensest hour of his life.

* * *

By the halfway point, Conway's parents were up and about, ready or close to being so as he saw them make the finishing touches on where the ceremony would be held, which was little more than just a few dark floral decorations and what appeared to be a small table standing right in front of the podium which held both an urn and a recent picture of Conway himself. The star of the show himself muttered to himself up in the tree something about how his rich parents could choose a _funeral_ of all things to be cheap about.

The first car pulled into the driveway of Conway's house and parked approximately after three quarters of the hour passed. With binoculars, Conway immediately felt livid when he saw his cousin step out of the car shortly after. Maylene started off towards the house just then on reflex upon seeing the first car park at the house.

An interesting detail to be discovered here was that, while similar, Conway and Maylene recognized Sloan/Saturn in different ways. Conway immediately knew it was Sloan when he stepped out, and it turned out that in his Sloan persona, Saturn did everything he could to naturally alter his look without going overboard. His hair remained the same color, though it was worn completely down rather than curved up into to two sides. The other major detail that "separated" Sloan from Saturn was the thick, round-shaped glasses. Much like his relatives, once upon a time Saturn too was visually impaired. Though he had acquired contact lenses (and later got his eyes laser-corrected) since joining Team Galactic, in the presence of his family, he continued to wear fake duplicates of his old glasses.

Maylene managed to reach Conway's house just before any other cars pulled up after Saturn's. She took a deep breath, having mentally rehearsed her "lines" before getting here. She fully expected to see Saturn and was a bit surprised to see the man answering the door to appear similar, but not exactly the same as she had planned. The glasses in particular almost made Sloan to appear as a kinder, gentler soul. Though Maylene knew from the get-go this must be a rouse, she could see now how Conway had been so easily fooled into thinking his cousin was a good person for all these years.

Saturn, on the other hand, was quick to recognize Veilstone City's Gym Leader, but restrained himself from a negative reaction, especially after seeing what appeared to be obliviousness on her face. "May I help you…?"

"Um, hi… am I at the right place?" Maylene asked him, holding up the invite she received. "For the… funeral?"

"This is the address," Saturn calmly replied, letting her in immediately upon seeing the invitation. Much as Saturn loathed seeing her here, he felt that with this disguise that he would throw her off so that she would become irrelevant as a threat to his plans. "And who might you be? I'm afraid it was my aunt and uncle who sent out the invitations, and seeing as I haven't lived here in years…"

"Ah, that's understandable," Maylene forgave him easily. "I took up the position only less than a year ago… but I'm Maylene, Veilstone City's present Gym Leader. Conway challenged me to a battle a month ago and won his very first badge. So I… I really wanted to pay my respects. I thought he was destined for great things…"

Thankfully, Saturn only knew Maylene as the fierce battler who almost ruined his plans and therefore found no real oddities with the way she spoke to him. "As the saying goes… the good die young," he replied, sounding somber about it. "Pardon me for being so rude; I'm Conway's older cousin, Sloan. I was the one who was first informed about the tragedy, so I took it upon myself to arrange this funeral aside from the smallest of details. Aunt Irma and Uncle Harold have simply been too devastated this week since they heard about it…"

"I can't imagine what they're going through right now," Maylene sympathized, though she was quite literal about this. Conway had anything but good things to say about his family… she really had no idea what kind of people she was about to meet. "But you did them a big favor by taking the reigns."

"Well, Conway and I were always close regardless of distance, so it's the least I could do," Saturn explained rather humbly. "I really should have visited more often, but unfortunately, this is not a world where we can simply turn back time and correct our errors…" There were some genuine feelings behind that particular statement; Saturn despised the flaws of this world, which was one major reason why he joined Team Galactic in the first place in their pursuit of creating a new world that they themselves could mold. "It will be a short while yet before we begin outside, Miss Gym Leader, so help yourself to the hors d'oeuvres in the living room."

Maylene smiled nervously and nodded. "I just had breakfast before coming here, but if you insist…" It was just her good fortune that she had a large appetite. She wandered over to the living room where various appetizers were set up in every corner of the house. That experience was awkward at best… Maylene expected she would have trouble containing her rage, but now she just felt confused.

Saturn greeted other guests as they arrived, none of which Maylene was familiar with, and she doubted that Conway was, either. These were all associates of Conway's parents, most of whom never even met Conway in person. She only scarcely saw Conway's parents in the background all this time and Franny was nowhere to be seen. While she had this time to herself, she gave her instructions a quick look-over again.

_ 2. Attach the first bug to Sloan via physical contact. Preferably, tap his shoulder to ask for permission to use the bathroom before the ceremonies begin._

Maylene waited for more guests to fill the house before attempting this. While Saturn was socializing with his aunt and uncle's friends and coworkers, Maylene took a deep breath to prepare herself. She knew she had to make this precise without arousing suspicion. The bug was well attached to the transparent sticker, which was positioned at the tip of her index finger. In spite of the fear of potentially screwing this up, Maylene gave the disguised Galactic commander an awkward tap to his shoulder, applying perhaps a little more pressure than she should have. Saturn turned around abruptly, startling Maylene with his stern and expectant expression.

"Yes…?" he addressed her, rather put off by how hard she poked him.

"Uh, sorry about that!" she immediately apologized, bowing her head. "I-I just wanted to know if I could maybe use the bathroom before we begin…?"

Saturn nodded stiffly. "The nearest one is down this hall to your left," he instructed, pointing in the appropriate direction.

"Th-thanks, I won't be too long," Maylene assured, hurrying towards the bathroom. She looked ecstatic once she checked her index finger and found no trace of the stickered bug any longer; step two was officially complete. The Gym Leader was just as ignorant as Paul when it came to large houses with multiple bathrooms, so she wasn't sure how she would ascertain the specific one she was going to. While walking down the hallway, it just then dawned on Maylene how massive Conway's house really was.

Once she reached the bathroom and locked the door, the only thing Maylene could think of to confirm her exact location was to check the contents of the bathroom. An especially large one with products for both men and women would indicate Conway's parents' bathroom. A medium-sized bathroom with solely feminine utilities equates to Franny's bathroom, while the smallest one of the bunch with only masculine products would of course mean Conway's bathroom.

This bathroom was quite large… easily the largest Maylene had ever seen. She confirmed that she was in the master bathroom and quickly referred to her directions. The young Gym Leader scowled as she found that she was in the bathroom the furthest away from Conway's bedroom, but calmed herself and looked carefully down both sides of the hallway after exiting the bathroom to make sure no one was around before she started to search for Conway's room, as instructed in step three:

_ 3. Use this bathroom break to find my room using the directions below depending on which bathroom you were sent to. Keep yourself hidden and inconspicuous and enter my room as quickly as you can. Open the window towards the tree outside and bug this room as well just to be on the safe side._

Maylene passed by Franny's quarter of the house and stopped short, backing up against the wall as she heard someone exit her bathroom. Chancing a small peek, Maylene found that it was none other than Franny herself who came out and slowly made her way down the hallway in the opposite direction of the Gym Leader. Maylene allowed herself a small, quiet sigh of relief before moving on to Conway's bedroom. She remembered that she would have to keep an eye on Franny throughout the ceremony and make sure she didn't fall into Saturn's grasp.

Unfortunately, just as Maylene reached Conway's room, Franny soon found her cousin to be standing close by.

"I was wondering when you'd come out," Saturn told her, maintaining a gentle and sympathetic attitude. "You've been taking this especially hard, Francine."

Franny had a hard time facing Saturn, being called out in such a way. She shook slightly, trying her best to keep her strong feelings from coming to the fore. "It's fine," she insisted. "There's nothing that can be done now… except this."

"That's very professional of you," Saturn complimented. "But believe me; we will make the best of what we have left. That's what Conway would want us to do."

"What do you mean?" Franny asked him, still sounding a bit sour about the whole ordeal.

Just then, Saturn checked his watch and frowned. "The explanation will have to wait. It's time to begin. Would you follow me after we finish laying your brother's soul to rest? I think it's high time we thoroughly discussed that promise I once made to you a long time ago."

Franny's eyes opened wide as she realized what Saturn was talking about. She immediately nodded, almost in disbelief. "O-of course I will, Sloan!"

Saturn nodded and let out a smile as the two made their way outside. "Good, good…"

By the time they were out of sight, Maylene came out of Conway's room after successfully opening his window and attaching a bug in a strategic area. She completely missed the exchange between the cousins, but knew she was pushing it for time, and thus raced down the hallways in order to get to the backyard as quickly as she could. It was time for step four of Operation Tom Sawyer.

_ 4. Forget yesterday. Here, you still believe me to be deceased and should behave as such. Don't hesitate to cry; I promise I won't make fun of you for it._

… This was why Maylene found Conway to be such a _painfully_ awkward person to be around for a long period of time. Part of her was about to break into a sob anyway just because of the mental stress she had gone through over the past night. She wasn't sure how much more of this "spying" she could take. Maylene didn't even want to know how Conway was keeping himself sane in spite of the insanity that just unfolded in his life.

"Look at me, watching my own funeral," Conway mused to himself as he watched the crowd pour out from the house and sit down before the podium through his binoculars. "Figures that everyone here except Maylene is a total stranger… mom and dad's _friends_."

He thought it over… of course, Conway could help but be a little excited to watch his own funeral, but knew the perfect one would be much more elegant and all of his peers would be there… even Paul.

"What I wouldn't give to see Dawn as the Becky to this funeral of mine," he wished with a sigh. That was pretty much what was keeping him grounded at this point: hopeless fantasies beyond his reach. "For her, I might actually entertain the thought of crashing the funeral…"

Conway was only going to sit in on a little bit of this ceremony, as he needed to use the emptied house as an opportunity to get his end of the mission accomplished. As such, he tried not to get himself _too_ caught up in his Dawn fantasies.

Saturn caught Maylene bringing up the rear as the seats outside filled up quickly. "Indigestion problems, Miss Gym Leader?" he asked. Maylene wasn't sure whether or not to take that question seriously, but she didn't want to risk being casual with him. "You were in the bathroom for a while…"

"Umm, yeah," she answered uneasily. "I'm so new at this whole Gym Leader thing… I can't help but wonder how many times I'll have to go through with this as long as I carry the title…"

"I suppose I cannot expect perfect professionalism out of one so young," Saturn agreed. "But it's important to experience such unpleasant times to strengthen your own resolve. This… _this_ is _reality_ at its darkest, Miss Gym Leader."

It was disturbing to hear such talk, and even worse to pretend to play along without completely losing it.

"I-I'm so sorry," she apologized, squirming. "I'll try to do better, I promise!"

Saturn was not impressed with seeing such a fierce battler look so frail and weak at such a time like this. He had much higher standards for someone he thought posed a threat to this scheme, but Saturn merely sighed and went ahead of Maylene. "Take your seat. It's time to begin."

Much as Maylene wanted to look back at the tree where Conway was hiding, she knew better than to be distracting in such a way. The only seat left was in the front row… right next to Conway's immediate family members.

Conway's parents seemed rather distant while Franny looked even more unpleasant than usual to be around. As Maylene awkwardly took the final vacant seat, which landed her right next to Franny, she thought about her next task…

_ 5. Keep Franny away from Sloan. Or at the very least, interact with her and try to subtly discourage her from listening to anything Sloan says about that intern job he promised her. If my sister joins Team Galactic, it will only be that much harder to take them down._

This was going to be difficult for Maylene to pull off. She had never formally met Franny and thus had no business speaking about personal subjects to her directly; logically, Maylene shouldn't even know about Saturn's intentions for Conway's sister… bringing these topics up so forwardly and suddenly would immediately put Franny on the defensive; vile as she could be, she was still every bit as perceptive and intelligent as her little brother.

Not to mention the funeral was about to finally start. Maylene couldn't strike up any sort of conversation with Franny while Saturn gave the eulogy. At the very best, the young Gym Leader attempted to make eye contact with Franny, but Franny seemed to be in another world entirely. She seemed so worn down and stressed out… much unlike her parents, who were professionally stoic.

"Where is fancy bred? In the heart or in the head?" Saturn began; his tone soft and thoughtful. "A line from my cousin's favorite movie. Incidentally, as he and his family already knew, the true source is the Shakespearean work, The Merchant of Venice. I remember the last time I spoke with Conway in person; I asked him precisely what sort of answer he had for this inquiry."

Thanks to the bugged podium, Conway was getting a crystal-clear reception of every word Saturn spoke. He already struggled to control his anger. "That was my favorite movie when I was _seven_, that liar… and he never talked to me about Shakespeare!" He kept his voice down as much as he possibly could, but Conway knew this was the true test he had to face: see how long he could bear to listen to his cousin's lies that would highlight the deception he was under for so many years while still controlling his temper.

"But Conway was never simple-minded, not even in his youth," Saturn claimed. "His answer to the question was neither, saying that fancy is actually bred in your senses… sight, touch, and hearing, specifically. From there, the heart and the head develop the impressions there. One may have more power over the other, but the bottom line is that I always knew my cousin was destined for greatness… Conway reached a level of deepness most adults could never hope to achieve. Never before have I felt this sorrowful for being wrong."

There was a twig in Conway's hands, bent upwards and very close to snapping.

"For all that Conway had done for me, it was my personal mission to ensure his victory in winning the affections of the little red-haired girl he had sought after for so long…"

The twig snapped. Red hair… Conway knew exactly who Saturn was talking about. A topic most sensitive to him, Conway was well on _his_ way to beginning to lose it. Maylene looked confused at this particular part as well.

"Another life ended far too soon," Saturn continued, undeterred. "Only now do we see how truly flawed this world can be; what justice was there in taking Conway's life? We all wish to turn back time and save his life, but our world does not, nor never will work that way. The best we can do is carry out the wishes Conway had while he was alive." He turned to his extended family. "The ones who truly suffer are my unfortunate aunt, uncle, and Franny… their only child left. Every day, they must live their lives and endure their loss… and simply pray that their remaining child will not become a victim of cruel fate as well."

Conway wasn't sure how much more of this he could take, though it was supporting his suspicions about his cousin's ulterior motives. But sooner or later, he would have to cut himself away from this distraction…

"We are gathered here today in remembrance of a young man we all felt would assuredly meet with success," Saturn pressed on; by now he had very well gotten the attention of his aunt and uncle, who were breaking down into tears at this point. Franny was always listening to him, and by this point tears were welling up in her eyes as well. "What remained of his body and very soul is now in the form of ashes within this urn. A young man like himself would not think to make his own written will, of course, but my crystal-clear memory of all the times I've had with Conway will tie up the loose ends remaining in the final chapter of his life."

This is exactly what Conway counted on: Saturn taking advantage of his lack of a last will and testament.

"In all the years I've spent with Conway, there is one thing I know to be true," Saturn said, then suddenly gesturing towards a certain area. "Like most free spirits, Conway would not want to be kept within the confines of this urn for all eternity. And so, at the end of this ceremony, we will free his soul at last; spreading his ashes around this tree, where he so often loved to be over the years."

_That_ was something Conway did not count on. And now all of a sudden his hiding place and stealth would soon be compromised if he didn't get out of there. But with everyone looking at the tree now (Maylene in particular fearful, wondering if Conway had actually planned this out), Conway couldn't quietly sneak into his bedroom window just yet.

"But before that, let us all close our eyes and pray for his unfortunate soul," Saturn instructed, which took the crowd's attention away from the tree. "It's a pity we can do little more for him at this point, but let us wish him the best in the afterlife."

Now that the attention was off the tree, Conway knew he had to act now. He wasn't sure how much more of this nonsense he could bear to listen to from his cousin as it was. Hastily, he packed all of his belongings into his carryon bag that were utilized for this personal mission of his and started going further up the sturdy branch that led to his window.

Checking quickly to see that no one, especially Saturn, was looking in his general direction, Conway tossed his bag through the window before scrambling up into his room himself. It was hard for Conway to believe in anything other than what he suspected from the beginning: Saturn filling his eulogy with lies, nonsense, and blatant sucking-up to his parents… he would not do that without a reason. In his particular situation, remembering what he suffered during the encounter with Mars, knowing Saturn's tendency to not return the things Conway lent him over the years…

And by bringing up the lack of will, Conway could draw no other conclusion; Saturn was trying to seize everything he ever owned. For what purpose, Conway wasn't sure… he didn't know very much about Team Galactic at all, let alone their aspirations.

There was no way Conway would be able to save all of his belongings, but he knew he had to at least secure the things that could not be replaced.

Sympathetically, he patted the top of his monitor the way one would normally pet a dog or cat. "You've been a loyal companion for all these years," Conway said, actually speaking to his computer. "But that's why we have these things called "backup discs" – to preserve your soul until you're reincarnated into a new computer," he said gleefully, pulling out a backup disc he had made not very long ago. "Much as it pains me to depart from you… maybe one day we'll meet again."

Conway wished he could feasibly wipe his computer clean during this timeframe, but such a thing would immediately tell Saturn that tampering of that degree done preemptively might make him believe that Conway was alive after all, which was exactly what Conway wanted to avoid. It would also take too long; the best Conway could do was encrypt some files – something more realistic and natural that he would do before his death – and move on to his valuable books and other assorted belongings. It wasn't long before Conway's bag started to get heavy and over-packed… and it wasn't easy for Conway to get himself to stop, knowing that this may be the last time he'd see anything he didn't take with him.

But there were other essentials he needed to take with him, and this would be his one and only chance to seize the assets. Conway winced as he forcibly removed himself from his own room and dashed over to the kitchen, raiding the refrigerator and cabinets of anything edible that was suitable for this weary traveler.

The final and most important thing Conway needed from his house lied within, surprisingly, his parents' bedroom. He happened to know exactly where they were, too: the bedside drawer, top shelf. Conway stared hard at what he found, as expected… his parents' credit cards. They weren't ones that were used often, so Conway could easily take two or three and his absent-minded parents would be none the wiser. This was, of course, the most important acquisition of Conway's, as this would still give him access to his parents' money and allow him to anonymously charge his parents for anything he bought while on his journey. Financial stability was an essential; Conway wasn't ready for poverty. Perhaps it was a bit low to resort to this, but Conway saw no other way to keep himself afloat financially.

"This is it," Conway sighed, taking a few select credit and debit cards and slipping them into his pocket. "No turning back, now."

His half of the mission was complete. While Conway felt terrible about this in spite of his sour sentiments towards his family, their superficial and obviously timed emotional moments during the ceremony (as Conway stated before, he bugged the entire front row of seats the night before, and was thusly able to hear the rest of his family as well as his cousin) was heart-breaking; even in the wake of their son's death, his mother and father could only think of looking good in front of their peers. Franny's silence was telling enough for him, though he still hoped Maylene could keep Saturn away from her.

Conway no longer had any reservations about keeping his status a secret from his family; never before had he needed more definitive proof of what he always believed: his own family never really loved him. And if that was the case… there was no time like the present to informally disown himself from this disgraceful family of his.

"I've seen enough," Conway decided. "Maylene… I trust you'll do whatever you can to accomplish your mission." As he opened the front door, the morning sun's light glared against his glasses. "This is the last time I'll set foot here."

As Conway walked off, never to see his house again as far as he was concerned, he carefully made his way back to Reggie's. Meanwhile, back at the funeral, the ashes had been spread. Formally, it seemed to be over, but that's when the crowd started to get chatty like they would at any other gathering. Saturn especially, as he spoke mostly to his aunt and uncle, handing them a suspicious document.

All but Franny managed to strike up a conversation with somebody, whether it was related to Conway or not. Maylene found her perfect opportunity and approached the mourning sister of Conway.

"A-are you holding up alright?" Maylene awkwardly asked her as she came close by, which almost startled the older girl before she resumed looking cold and unreadable. "I'm… sorry, I just couldn't help but notice…"

"You're our city's Gym Leader," Franny acknowledged without a lick of emotion in her voice. "The one my cousin defeated a month ago…"

"Ah, yes," Maylene affirmed. "That's why I was invited here…"

Franny sharply glared at the younger girl. "Then I don't want to hear another word from you. Because of you, my brother was able to win a Gym Badge that she showcased on live national television. That's the _last time_ I saw him, you know. On _television_, where he _mocked_ and _ridiculed_ me."

It seemed as if Maylene was not going to get very far with this step of the mission after all. "I… did hear about-…"

"What did I just say?" Franny shouted at her, rapidly losing her cool. "I don't want to talk about it! There's nothing _you_ can do to change it! I can't believe my parents even invited you here!"

The fit that Franny threw attracted the attention of quite a few people, but most importantly Saturn himself, who instantly glared at Maylene for trying to get close to Franny. He wasn't about to take any risks by letting her stick around any longer.

Very briefly, Saturn looked to his uncle and aunt and nodded to them before taking the document back. "Thank you very much," he whispered. "Now, allow me to handle this."

As Franny ran off to cry in her own privacy, Saturn approached Maylene and looked most displeased with what she inadvertently caused.

"I-I'm so sorry!" Maylene apologized, bowing her head. "I just wanted to see if she was okay! I didn't mean to upset her; I swear…!" Maylene herself was about to break down just from the stress of keeping this secret from all these people… and Conway's own family as well.

"Even so, it may be best that you take your leave early, Miss Gym Leader," Saturn coldly suggested. "Before you start getting even more unpopular around the most important financial bodies of Veilstone City."

Leaving early… that reminded Maylene of the final step she was left before reconvening with Conway at Reggie's house.

_ 6. Be sure to bug Sloan's car before you leave. Take any opportunity available to leave first so that you won't be caught red-handed._

It appeared that Maylene would be unable to reach Franny after all. Much as it pained her to disappoint Conway, she knew when it was time to stop pursuing an unreachable goal. At least, not at the risk of blowing her cover and ruining her chances to finish the last step of the mission.

"I understand," she said, still in a very apologetic tone. "I guess I do have to move on and do my job, too… just… let her know I meant no harm, okay?"

"Of course," was Saturn's stiff reply. "Now, you know the way out, I presume?"

Maylene nodded. "Yes… I'll be on my way now." She quickly approached the tree where "Conway's" ashes were spread and bowed down respectfully. "Sorry for causing a disturbance. I'll miss you, Conway."

She looked up for just a moment and saw that Conway had already left his post. This was at least a good sign… so far. Maylene sighed and left the "festivities", so to speak, and came out of the same front door Conway himself left from not long ago. She remembered the first car that arrived in the parking lot, and since she was the first visitor to arrive, she knew this had to be Saturn's car. With no trouble at all, she bugged Saturn's car and walked briskly back to Reggie's, still with the weight of failing to get through to Franny over her shoulders.

Franny tried; she really did. Unlike her attention-deficient parents, the advent of Conway's death was a daily torment for her to endure. Deep down, she did care about this and was torn to shreds when she realized she would never be able to make amends with Conway when they would grow up. But being the stable-minded one of the family, or so she thought, she couldn't show any signs of weakness. She refused to let her emotions control her actions… these were traits Saturn saw firsthand, and that was what convinced him that his other cousin would be just as valuable as a Galactic grunt.

He was quick to track his other cousin down, who had broken down into tears, but kept her crying as quiet as she possibly could so as not to attract attention from the side of the house that Conway was previously hiding around while he was in the tree. Franny didn't move when she realized when she wasn't alone… because she saw her cousin as her only hope for getting through his horrible loss.

"I'm impressed you lasted as long as you did," Saturn complimented as he took a seat next to her on the ground. "You needn't feel ashamed."

"I can't believe my parents invited _her_ here!" Franny cried out in agony. "All that plays in my mind over and over again is what Conway said to me on the TV! He died hating me and nothing can bring him back-…"

Saturn looked to his cousin sternly. "Francine. I believe now is the time to discuss the promise."

"How can I even think about that now?" Franny asked, sniffling. "I can't be a good intern if I'm torn up over a stupid thing like this…!"

"That's where you're wrong," Saturn corrected. "Where I work… we can help you. You can learn to control your emotions. Work will get your mind off this loss, and I believe this is what Conway would want, correct? He would want you to move on."

Franny helplessly looked up at Saturn. "Sloan… he _hated_ me. And… I hated him, too. He wouldn't want the best for me! And it isn't like we can ask him now!"

"Join me," Saturn gently urged. "Because I promise you with my very own life that we can achieve what you just said was impossible."

Upon hearing that, Franny's eyes opened wide, amazed and aghast at what she was hearing. "You mean… bring him back from the dead…?"

Saturn smiled at her. "Where I work, we're creating a new world; one without the flaws and evils that have ruined this one. Francine, Conway _will_ be in that new world, and you may reunite with him and tie up all of the loose ends between the two of you."

This honestly sounded too good to be true, but Franny never knew a time where Sloan lied to her before… "Sloan, you… you're serious, aren't you…?"

"On a day such as this, I could not possibly be more serious," Saturn assured her. "I am not content to say goodbye to Conway forever today. You certainly aren't, either."

"What have you got planned…?" Franny asked him. "I… I want to know!"

Saturn smiled again. "All of your questions will be answered; that I can assure you." He stood up, extending a hand to his cousin. "I've seen it firsthand today that you are ready for recruitment, Francine. This is the day you've been waiting for, and starting with today, we'll work towards reaching Conway directly again in our new world. What holds you back here?"

For once, Saturn had a point. Franny was very eager to leave the house as soon as possible, even when Conway was still "alive". She was always interested in the internship promised to her, and now hearing about how it could solve all of her problems… there really wasn't much to convince her _not_ to accept Saturn's offer; she cared for her parents about as much as Conway himself did, and in her moment of weakness and desperation…

She took Saturn's hand and stood up alongside the Galactic commander, hugging him… which was a little unexpected for Saturn.

"Get me out of here, Sloan," she breathlessly requested. "I want to see the new world as soon as possible."

While Franny hugged him, Saturn smirked; the gentle visage of Sloan no longer very present in his face. "Of course, my dear. And worry not; I'll take care of all the traveling expenses."

The deed his aunt and uncle just signed earlier indeed entitled Saturn the rights to all of Conway's belongings for putting on what they thought was a very deep and moving eulogy. With Conway out of the picture, his belongings at Saturn's disposal, and finally recruiting Franny into Team Galactic, Saturn was more than happy to finally rid himself of that lingering feeling of unfinished business. This time, he came out on top in spite of the messes that occurred.

Another victory for Team Galactic.

* * *

"So Franny was unreachable after all, huh?" Conway acknowledged with a sigh after he and Maylene reconvened at Reggie's house. "Don't be so down on yourself, Maylene. I'm surprised the plan actually went this well."

Maylene blinked. "What do you mean?"

"For such a hastily thrown-together plan, I didn't expect perfection," Conway explained. He was already setting up a new disguise for himself to sneak out of Veilstone City with. "But now I can keep tabs on Sloan wherever and whenever until he finds the bug while I go out and gain the strength I'll need to defeat him personally."

"You shouldn't try and take him on all by yourself," Maylene scolded. "He's dangerous. But I can't believe how… _nice_ he seemed until the end of the reception."

Conway nodded. "If he hadn't been telling so many obvious _lies_ during that eulogy, I might have started to doubt your testimony, Maylene. But worry not; I refuse to behave so recklessly in this situation. I've come too far to screw it up now. But I appreciate everything you've done for me, Maylene. I couldn't have pulled this off without you."

"I still wish I could have done more," Maylene mumbled. "But you know you're always welcome here, right? Even if you can't go home for a while, you'll always have a home here, and I know Reggie would say the same."

Suddenly, Conway looked a little doubtful. "I forgot… he'll be gone for a while. It would be difficult for you to keep this kind of thing from him… you think he would keep this to himself?"

"I know he will," Maylene assured, nodding. "He and I fought off your cousin together, so we both understand the severity of your situation, Conway. He wouldn't tell a soul."

"Good to know," Conway said, sounding much more relaxed now. He proceeded to tie his hair up and put on a Newsboy cap. "Now I can finally start the journey…"

Maylene blinked at this. "So what are you going to do now?"

"Like I said before, I don't stand a chance against Sloan presently," Conway reminded her, putting on a high-collared jacket and replacing his regular glasses with sunglasses. "So how do I go about becoming stronger? The answer is simple: I must train my Pokémon and test their strength against Gym Leaders across Sinnoh."

"So you decided to do Gyms even though you won that Contest?" Maylene brought up, still highly curious of what Conway was up to.

"Much as I enjoyed that, Contests focus more on aesthetic appeal and style rather than battling strength," Conway said with remorse. "Not to mention they're all televised, and if I'm going to keep up this pretending-I'm-dead charade, I need to avoid recorded events as much as I possibly can. Thankfully, Gym Battles aren't like that."

Maylene was beginning to follow… "So that's why you're dressing weird, right? So people won't recognize you?"

Conway felt that blow to his ego after hearing that. "Weird? I thought this might look cool…"

Wisely, Maylene decided not to press the matter. "Er, right… right. You look… cool." It was so hard to sound honest about it, though. "When will you know you're ready, then? You know, to settle this once and for all?"

"When I qualify for the Sinnoh League," Conway answered. "So that means I've got seven badges left to earn."

"Even so, you're registered for the League under _your_ name, Conway," Maylene pointed out to him. "How are you going to bypass that?"

To that, Conway grinned and held out his Trainer ID, which now sported a picture of a disguised Conway with his name altered to Colin. "You wouldn't believe how easy it is to hack into the system, Maylene."

"You altered your ID by yourself?" Maylene was aghast. Things like this just seemed like magic to her.

"And I even managed to retain the Cobble Badge I earned from you in the data," he gloated with a smirk. "Of course, there are still a few kinks to work out… but this will be enough to fool the majority of the region for now until I can get this completely reconfigured."

The young Gym Leader groaned a little, rubbing her head. It had been a _long_ day… "Why do I have a feeling that what you're doing is illegal?"

To that, Conway just laughed it off. "Oh, it probably is, haha… ah, yeah, it's probably illegal."

The gleam in Conway's shades made him no less creepy than when he had his normal glasses on. Maylene couldn't believe how outrageously uncomfortable Conway could make her; she felt bad about it, but she was almost eager to get him out of the house at this point. "So, uh… which Gym Leader do you plan on facing first?"

"It's best to go with convenience until I can settle into this "new life" of mine," Conway told her, all packed up and ready to go. "The closest Gym from here is in Pastoria City, so it looks like Crasher Wake will be my next victim."

The way he said "victim" with the confident "hm" he added afterwards… he was getting creepier and creepier.

"That fake name sounds familiar," Maylene noted. "… Oh, wait, that's right. That's the name you tried to trick Brandon into believing was yours!"

Memories of that incident significantly snuffed out that bravado of his. "Ah… well, yes," he admitted. "Call it a stroke of inspiration… or just the first thing that came to mind again. I wonder if I should give this Colin gimmick a fake accent…"

Maylene held her hands up, not wanting to be the test subject for this. "I'd just focus on trying to distinguish Colin from yourself in more important ways for now! Maybe once you're far away enough from Veilstone City, you won't even have to bother with a disguise anymore. It's not like you're famous and people who aren't local from here are going to remember you from a brief mention in the news a long time ago…"

"Mm, perhaps," Conway agreed. "It would be convenient to be myself while _not_ being myself. There are many things I'll need to commit to memory."

Conway grabbed his belongings and started to walk for the front door, while Maylene stood up promptly. "You're going now…?"

"Might as well," Conway figured. "Time's a-wasting. I could get most of the traveling out of the way in a day or less if I head off now. I must thank you, Maylene, for all of your assistance. I wouldn't have been able to get this far without you."

Awkwardly, Maylene nodded to him. "Really, it's just relieving to know you're alive after all. That makes life easier for me already. Just be careful, alright? Don't hesitate to call me or Reggie if you ever need help," she instructed. "After all, we're all you've got to go to right now."

Conway looked away, thoughtful about this. "Right… I won't inconvenience either of you too much; cross my heart. I'm pretty sure I can handle myself well on my own." He smirked to himself. "If I can survive a month of being with Paul, that qualifies me to survive just about anything, right?"

That made Maylene laugh a little. "Guess you've got a point there." This made her realize something. "So, um… about Paul, if he comes here and asks about you…?"

"That won't happen," Conway coldly cut Maylene off. "Long before any of this reached the rest of the world… I was already dead to Paul. He'll be content to keep it that way."

With that, he opened the front door and stepped out while Maylene watched him until he was no longer in sight. Then she promptly slumped against the side of the door frame.

"I can't believe I'm saying this," she muttered. "But I think full-time double-duty Gym Leader and Breeder duties were _less_ stressful than… _this_. Unbelievable…"

Much to Maylene's relief, the following days would comparatively be much less hectic for her. Though it was still a struggle without having Reggie on hand, it was a cakewalk compared to the situations both Conway _and_ Paul faced.

* * *

"Here's your medicine; be sure to read the instructions and follow them accordingly," said Snowpoint City Hospital's pharmacist, handing Paul a bag containing quite a few bottles of various pills. "Do you have any questions?"

Paul, now back in his regular clothes and seemingly on his way out of the hospital, was told to stop by this area before leaving the building. After having a few days to cool down, he was a bit more in control of himself, though he was still far from well. "What if I don't take them?" he simply asked… and somehow still came off as rude as the pharmacist frowned.

"If you don't take them, you'll end up back here within a few days… only in the _morgue_ rather than the emergency room," she said in a flat tone. "It's bad for your health to question the hospital at a time like this, so if you want to stay away from this place, you might want to consider just doing what you're told for once."

It seemed within a few days that Paul already developed a bad reputation amongst the hospital staff for his attitude… especially with all of the extra perks he was given considering his situation. Still, Paul hated even having to be here in the first place, so he was ungrateful regardless of the fact that this hospital saved his life.

Though he crumbled half of the bag with his shaking wrist, Paul remained calm and nodded to her. "Very well." That was all he said before leaving the pharmacy area. Finally, Paul was free to roam the great outdoors again.

It wasn't easy convincing the doctors to let him go about his way, but Paul's stubborn nature reflected Brandon's in that it was essentially never-ending. Eventually, one opposing force was going to fall, and when it came to debates, Paul was rarely the one that fell. Thankfully, he had leverage as a terminally ill patient to let him live out his "dreams" and "enjoy" his life for the short time that he still had it.

The only issue would be the hospital bills and the cost for the medications. Without the proper insurance, Paul knew those would be huge bills coming up on Reggie's doorstep one day… bills he wouldn't be able to pay off by himself. Then Paul would have to explain these bills to Reggie, and eventually Brandon as well, since he'd ultimately be footing the bill. For everything that happened since he split up with Conway, Paul wasn't ready to disclose _any_ of that to _anybody_ just yet. It would be a long time before he could bring himself to outright admit what has effectively weakened him.

Much as it irritated Paul to take so much medication at once, it was at least effective in doing its job as the constant pain plaguing Paul for weeks dulled down significantly. But now Paul had to deal with a different kind of pain… the sting of defeat.

After nearly getting himself killed to reach this city, Paul was outright floored by Candice. Snowpoint City's Gym Leader tried multiple times to contact Paul after their short encounter in the bathroom, but Paul refused to see her. Now that Paul understood the severity of his situation, he knew that he had limitations he had no choice but to accept and adapt with.

Determined not to give up now, though he wasn't yet sure why he insisted on pressing on in light of this life-changing news, Paul resolved to train his Pokémon and develop his own strategy against Candice with the same four Pokémon he used last time. Clearly, Paul understood that his judgment was clouded in light of his bad health last time. Though he knew the Gym Leader wouldn't be so willing to pretend that battle never happened…

In spite of the fact that dusk was swiftly approaching and the area was covered in a thick fog that granted a very limited range of visibility, Paul pressed on through the city until he found Candice and her Abomasnow practicing various moves. Not far away, there was a building that happened to be very easy to climb. Even in his weakened state, Paul managed to reach the roof without much trouble as he glared down several feet below where he could barely make out Candice's figure… though Abomasnow's was a bit more apparent. "Candice!"

"Huh- wha…?" Candice turned around towards the direction of the voice, but found nobody behind her. The voice seemed to echo… but that voice was very familiar. "Oh… is it…?"

"Yeah, it's me," Paul replied snidely. "I just wanted to let you know that I plan on challenging you to a rematch in a few days. I've been released from the hospital, so don't bother worrying about my health."

That cinched it for Candice. "Paul! So it _is_ you… where are you, anyway?"

"That's irrelevant right now," Paul said; his tone sharp, yet controlled. "I'm going to train and develop a new strategy against you, so prepare yourself."

Candice wasn't sure why Paul insisted on speaking to her from such a distance, but he sounded healthy enough and he was making sense. It was hard to argue with him. "Well… I'll definitely do that, then! I look forward to battling with you again for sure. I'll finally get to battle the _real_ you!"

"You will," Paul affirmed. "But I have a favor to ask of you."

This was an unexpected twist. "Uh… a favor?"

Paul had thought back on past events long enough to remember something important about the time he spent in Squallville. "There's a good chance you'll come across another challenger soon," he informed her. "And I happen to be familiar with him… I can't stand him."

"You don't say…" Candice muttered awkwardly, put off by Paul's blunt and brutal honesty. "Then what's the favor got to do with this?"

"I would prefer you not mention me under any circumstance," Paul requested. "In fact, you don't even know me. You've never met the _real_ me, so wipe that previous battle from your memory."

Candice wasn't sure how to interpret this. "Wait… you want me to _forget_ about you? But how exactly can I do that?"

"Just pretend you never met me," Paul coldly instructed her. "I don't want him knowing about what happened to me… he's nosy and annoying and it's none of his business, so I want you to keep everything about our encounters confidential. He's my age, had dark hair and a red cap and travels with a Pikachu. He'll have two other traveling companions with him. So if you come across that group, keep your mouth shut when it comes to me."

"Wow, you're really serious about this," Candice remarked. "Well, if that's what you want, Paul…"

"Don't even address me by name," Paul cut her off. "As far as those people are concerned, we've never met. I won't act familiar around you, either. Do you swear you'll remember to do this if you come across him?"

Candice still wasn't really sure why Paul wanted her to go out of her way to lie like this, but who was she to judge? She had a feeling Paul naturally had a lot of enemies and that their conflicts ran much deeper than they would appear to be. "Well… in light of what's happened and all…" Candice sounded unsure of herself, but shook her head and stood firm from then on. "You've got my word; Gym Leader's honor. Just promise you'll be careful while you're training, alright?"

Paul was a strange and mysterious figure to Candice. In spite of all their interaction, she never could get a good, clear look at his face due to either the bandages or blood that often covered his face when they met, as well as the distance between the two when they battled and when they conversed in the hospital with a bathroom stall between them. In spite of that, it was difficult to just forget about him, but Candice figured it shouldn't be too hard to feign ignorance of his existence when it came to a certain future challenger from the Kanto region…

"Fine," he agreed. "Then we'll meet again soon… but it will be the first time you _really_ meet me. Don't forget that."

Paul hopped off the building from the side opposite of Candice before she could respond and sped off, passing the city limits and stopping to rest in the woods. Now that he knew it would be no easy feat to defeat Candice, much less with his weak-to-ice team, Paul knew where to focus to keep his mind off his impending doom.

"Three days," he decided to himself. "That's all the training I'll need in order to defeat her… as long as I'm still alive, I won't lose like that ever again."

In due time, promises to yourself would come to have very little meaning, as Paul would learn. But for now… he at least had the motivation to accept his cross to bear as one who would die much sooner than his peers.

Regardless of that, Paul was not yet completely through with his stages of grief. And unbeknownst to Paul, his father was inadvertently closing in on him.

Paul no longer wore the winter coat Conway purchased for him. Now that Paul was in the city where the climate was at least a little more stable, he could get by with his jacket alone. The coat was now enduring the same fate as the strategy Conway wrote out for him; shoved into his backpack… shoved into obscurity.

As always, Paul shoved the past behind him in order to focus on what lied ahead. Now that he experienced firsthand how challenging Candice really was, it was obvious that this battle would be just as much of a struggle as it was against Byron with type disadvantages… now likely even more of one since Paul's team was plagued with severe weaknesses to Ice-type attacks as opposed to simply just being ineffective against it, which many of the Pokémon's attacks were. This was going to be nothing like the battle with Byron.

But now it was clear to Paul what this all really meant to him now: defeating Candice would prove to him (and assumedly others) that his terminal illness _could_ be kept at bay long enough for him to prove his competence.

Anger associated with Paul was pretty much a given; though he restrained it for now, that particular stage of grief was well underway, with the Bargaining stage beginning to seep in as well.

These stages combined were going to have some… very interesting results down the road, to say the least.

* * *

**( TBC )**


	14. But It Feels So Lonely Without Barry!

**( Notes:**

**There, a month and a half's wait isn't as bad, right? Of course, this chapter is waaaay shorter than previous ones, but this chapter's purpose was only to tie up the remaining loose end and give Conway something to do while we spend the next few chapters after this dealing exclusively with Paul, Reggie, and Brandon as a dysfunctional family with episode adaptations to boot. Presently, _Travels of the Trifecta!_ has now been planned out to 25 chapters, which stretches out up until _Gotta Get a Gible!_, the end of the Galactic Battles season of the dub and shortly before the next major canon appearance of Paul. Not bad, right? Of course, this chapter takes place during _Classroom Training!_ and _Sliding into Seventh!_; the end is pretty much exactly like the end of the latter episode. **

**Things are getting fired up on the Japanese side of things as the Sinnoh League arc started this week. It's confirmed (though anyone would've seen it coming a mile away) that the Top 16 matches will be Barry/Paul and Ash/Conway, leading Ash and Paul to their battle in the Top 8, and most likely Ash will lose to the "legendary trainer" in the Top 4, which at least is a real sign of _progression_ since the friggin' Johto League. It's also now revealed that Conway owns a Shuckle, so expect me to plan in that capture at some point. Conway's being as awesome as always, and there was even some minor interaction between Barry and Conway... right around when I was writing the second round of the Barry/Conway battle, no less. Looks like there's nothing to worry about on that front. Feel free to let me know how I did with writing Barry!**

**So next chapter is the one... A Pyramiding Rage. I plan on working very hard with this one. I haven't had as much free time lately at work to write the fic, which is why this is coming out after I planned for it to (which was by the end of June). In spite of that, I want to do whatever I can to finish chapter 15 by August 13th, as I promised a friend that I would have this chapter finished by her birthday. We'll see how well that goes! Also, it looks like FFN is back to being intolerant of a ? and ! being joined together, which sort of screws up how I describe the more intense scenes of this chapter in my opinion, but rest assured if a line looks like it needs a !, chances are there really is one there and FFN's just being stupid about it again. Glad you're all sticking around in spite of my shoddy rate of updating, so enjoy your reward for waiting, small as it may be!**)

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* * *

**

Perilous weather seemed to be around every corner during Paul and Conway's journey, regardless of whether they were together or separated. The further up north they traveled, Mother Nature's natural disasters proved to be more challenging. Thankfully, at this point, both were granted a break from the blizzards that threatened to stall their progress. Conway was back in the southeastern area of the Sinnoh region while Paul was stable in Snowpoint City. While the latter still had to deal with the bitter cold temperatures, even he was graced with the sun breaking through the clouds, giving the northern tip of Sinnoh a reprieve at last.

Even Ash and his friends had a relatively easy time reaching Sinnoh's northernmost location, as they primarily traveled via a well-heated tunnel… the path that "normal" Pokémon trainers took; the beaten path Paul staunchly refused to take advantage of. Thus, regardless of the fact that Ash and friends' progress towards Snowpoint City was significantly slowed with Dawn's participation in the Sandalstraw Contest and the Pokémon Ping-Pong Tournament, the trio managed to reach their destination not too long after Paul, whose progress was only hampered by his own stubbornness.

Only two significant people were left dealing with the harsh winter elements: Reggie, who had to deal with the slick roads among other things on the way up to Snowpoint City…

… The second was none other than Brandon himself. Much like his second son, Brandon was not keen on taking the easy way up; after all, the only Regigigas book he had on hand still wasn't entirely specific about the exact location of the Colossal Pokémon. He circled around entire diameters of various mountains and often met with risky situations of his own. But Brandon was far luckier than Paul, so far surviving the brutal mountain habitat quite well. However, his extensive search through the mountains was the main reason why he had not yet reached Snowpoint City even though he had a huge lead over his son.

Despite Brandon's _very_ thorough search, he remained empty-handed with no clues as to where to head other than Snowpoint City. While the fruitless search was understandably irritating for the Pyramid King, Brandon actually relished every moment of this journey. Being back in his home region for the first time in well over seven years and immersed in an adventure for the ages made Brandon feel young again. He only wished he had Byron and Palmer with him to share the experience of what their heyday was like. This was more than enough to convince Brandon to press on, of course.

This rugged adventurer was long ago taught to expect the unexpected; to go above and beyond, and to remain vigilant in pursuing a goal no matter how often one is met with failure.

But there was one thing he did not expect to come up in his journey: the Battle Pyramid he left behind in Kanto so long ago. Just as Brandon finished sliding down the base of yet another mountain (once again finding nothing of relevance to his journey), he felt numerous unnaturally powerful gusts of wind beat down over him. A massive shadow soon enveloped the Frontier Brain as he looked up, trying to find the cause of the powerful breezes, only to find that his view of the sky had become completely blocked. However, the whirring of certain engines was all too familiar for Brandon; it didn't take long for him to figure out what was hovering over him… and honestly, Brandon was not sure whether or not to be relieved or worried.

He had gone well over a month without contacting his fellow Frontier Brains, Scott, or even his assistant. Brandon knew this brash move was going to come back and bite him eventually… he just didn't expect it to play out quite like this. Impressed as he was with the fact that his Battle Pyramid was indeed fit for crossing lengths of ocean, the comfort soon became the concern and uncertainty of what this all meant.

One thing that was apparent, though: whoever was in the Battle Pyramid knew exactly where Brandon was, because as the vessel flew by the Frontier Brain, he noticed a very long and sturdy length of rope hanging from the edge. In the middle of the mountain range, there was no ample space for the Battle Pyramid to land properly; hence whoever piloted his facility inherently knew Brandon would be able to climb his way towards the Battle Pyramid, even in midair.

To know he had that kind of strength… it wasn't too hard for Brandon to figure out who had just discovered him. With very little trouble, he climbed his way back into the facility he had gone so long without seeing. No one was there to greet Brandon once he safely made it onboard, meaning there must be only one person inside, and that sole occupant was stuck at the steering wheel at the bridge. Brandon decided to pay the lone pilot a visit promptly.

"Sam!" he shouted out, effectively startling his assistant, but Brandon also cut himself off as he found his base of operations looking quite different from how he remembered it. Extra screens and various digital devices had been implemented flawlessly into the Battle Pyramid's structure. "What in the…?"

"Uh, nice to see you again, as well," Samuel nervously greeted. "I guess you're expecting an explanation right about now, aren't you…?"

Brandon sternly nodded, but was soon distracted with the new gadgets surrounding him. "First… find a place to land. I believe there's much we both need to be caught up with."

Samuel quickly agreed to that. "Say no more. Let's just hope I can _find_ a space to land…"

The Frontier Brain couldn't help but be highly intrigued by all of this technology installed into his facility… without him knowing of it, especially. While he waited for Samuel to make a landing, Brandon recalled that he vowed to do something like this once he returned to Kanto in order to make himself available in case of emergencies, such as Reggie's recent incident. If there was one glaring weakness on Brandon, it was his lack of familiarity with certain forms of technology. A true old-school man, Brandon often shunned the newest ways to make life easier. He was at least able to pilot his Battle Pyramid, though he had the drive to learn that much: it enabled Brandon to continue his life as an adventurer while maintaining his duties of being a Frontier Brain. It was a worthwhile skill to learn, though he often left most of the technological work to his assistant.

Luckily, a stray area of stable ground was discovered and Samuel promptly landed the Battle Pyramid, loathing the silent tension in the control room. "So…" he finally said. "I guess this wasn't something you expected, right?"

"Indeed," Brandon agreed, looking rather indignant. "I'll admit you're impressive to be able to cross the ocean without any problems, but I was very clear about my intentions in the note I left you all. So why are you here?"

"I was sent by Scott's orders, Brandon," Samuel explained, sounding helpless about the matter. "The other Frontier Brains weren't very happy about the way you left us… but they were worried about you nonetheless, and I can see why. Sinnoh just gets more and more treacherous up north."

Brandon scoffed at the idea that his coworkers actually doubted his survival skills. "I was doing just fine," he claimed. "The search has been long and arduous, but nothing I can't handle. I assume these new bells and whistles you installed in the Battle Pyramid played a role in finding me so easily?"

"_Easily?_" Samuel almost wanted to faint. "I've been looking for you since the day you left, Brandon! And that was a long time ago, you know. I even stopped by your old house to see if you were visiting your family. Reggie said you had left days before I arrived."

"I only went there due to a family emergency," Brandon coldly explained. That was a very dark time for him, but also an important event that made him aware of his own faults for being impossible to communicate with. "But while I was there, I found the book I was looking for. I was in Veilstone City for only a few hours… aside from the time it took me to get there by boat from Canalave City, I've been fully dedicated in my search for Regigigas."

Samuel blinked. "Oh, right. Reggie told me about that, too. So you've had the book this long and you still haven't found it…?"

"Even the book was vague about its precise location," Brandon told him. "I didn't want to take any chances, so I've been scouring this mountain range and leaving no stone unturned."

To that, his assistant just sighed and shook his head. "I'm pretty sure it's very close to Snowpoint City, Brandon. We ought to set course for there immediately."

"What…?" That got Brandon's attention. "Why do you sound so sure of yourself?"

"Well, you've noticed by now the enhancements I made to the control center," Samuel explained with a nervous smile. "I'm able to cover a lot more ground with these updated GPS systems, which is how I found you while I was scanning the surface. I figured only you would be crazy enough to scale these mountains all by yourself…"

The Pyramid King just stared at Samuel, unimpressed with his attempts of making the conversation lighthearted. "Continue."

"Ah-… right, right," Samuel bowed sheepishly. Spending so much time restlessly searching for his boss made him quite flustered. "I did all of this not only to improve my chances of finding you, but of also finding Regigigas… you know, so you'd be more inclined to continue your journey here."

"The way you were talking," Brandon pointed out. "Before this explanation… you sounded like you knew of Regigigas' location."

"Aha, well…" Samuel thought he had done an adequate job in making Brandon's life easier like this, but wasn't sure just how well or badly the Frontier Brain would take it. "I wouldn't say I _found_ it, per se, but since I've greatly enhanced our communication systems and increased our range, I decided to call up several people in Snowpoint City over the past few days to see if they knew anything about Regigigas. I also asked about your whereabouts, but no one's seen you set foot there yet."

Brandon tried not to look too anxious for Samuel to finish his explanation. "I am slowly but surely making my way up here. Now, who tipped you off about Regigigas?"

"I'm that easy to read?" Samuel asked him, but not expecting a response. "I'd rather not jump the gun just yet, but there's a nice lady who watches over the Snowpoint Temple where Regigigas presumably "sleeps", so to speak."

"Sleeps?" Brandon echoed, sounding bewildered. "Then its location is confirmed!"

"Well, the shrine maiden was still a little vague when I talked to her, but she promised she'd go into more detail once I found you," Samuel explained. "But from the sounds of things, capturing that Pokémon is going to be much trickier than you'd expect. I have faith that you'll succeed, but there's something you really need to know before we set off, Brandon."

His voice grew somber near the end, making Brandon both curious and wary of what was about to be said. "What might that be?"

Samuel found it difficult to look Brandon in the eyes by this point. "I meant it when I said I have faith you'll succeed, but the bottom line is that you _have_ to succeed. As long as you capture Regigigas, you'll be in good graces with the Battle Frontier committee despite the way you abandoned your post." He took on an ominous tone from then on. "But if you come back to Kanto empty-handed… they're not going to forgive you so easily."

That feeling Brandon had about karma coming to pay him back for his actions? It came back to him, more powerful than ever before. "Then failure is not an option," he realized. "Thank you for letting me know, Sam. I'll do everything in my power to capture Regigigas… hopefully this shrine maiden will understand the situation."

"The committee was awfully vague about what your punishment would be," Samuel noted. "I guess the fact that you have tenure means that they're not sure how to punish you effectively, given that they can't really fire you on the spot after everything you've done for them over the years…"

"But that doesn't mean they won't try to find a loophole," Brandon countered. "For as long as it's taken me, I imagine they're all quite furious. The longer I take, the greater the consequence I'll suffer should I fail. It's very important that we execute this mission flawlessly."

Samuel smiled upon hearing this. "That's why I went out of my way to upgrade your facility. I know you're not really into that, but you're going to need all the help you can get when it comes to this. I want you to succeed, Brandon, so I'll do everything in my power to make sure that happens." He then smiled again, looking a bit embarrassed. "Besides, I kind of like working with this stuff. You were going to need this eventually, so…"

Brandon nodded. "Much as I disapprove of taking the easy way out of things, I'm not left with much of a choice here. The stakes are too high, and unlike _some_ people, I know when to set aside my pride, as the risks involved simply aren't worth taking. You've done well." He had a clear person in mind when he spoke of overcoming pride… all too clear.

"We'll make it work out," Samuel assured him. "More importantly, it's relieving to know you're alright. It's not that we doubt your abilities, Brandon… but when you go a while without contacting us, it's only natural that we start to get worried."

"I understand," the Frontier Brain stated humbly. "And I was planning on having our communication systems upgraded anyway after what happened with my family, so I thank you for accomplishing that ahead of time."

"It was my pleasure," Samuel insisted. "But now we'd best hurry and reach Snowpoint City as soon as possible. I'll go ahead and contact the shrine maiden so we can officially set up an appointment for a visit to the temple."

As the Battle Pyramid ascended from its landing point, Brandon smirked, eager to speak with someone who might possibly know more about Regigigas than anyone else. For all the hardships he endured, after months of searching, the reward for his patience and persistence was almost within reach.

"Alright, I think we've got a connection going," Samuel reported a short while after; the Battle Pyramid swiftly approaching its destination. "Ready, Brandon?"

To that, the Pyramid King smirked. "I was born ready."

Shortly afterward, the large screen installed in the control room was activated, displaying only quiet static until the call was made. After a few rings, the static faded out to clearly display a modest-looking young woman wearing a typical shrine maiden outfit. Aside from her fringe and forelocks, her black hair was completely covered up as well.

"Ah, Samuel," she acknowledged. "It's a pleasure to hear back from you. I see you have a friend with you this time. Might this be…?"

Samuel smirked and gestured at his boss. "Right; this is Pyramid King Brandon, the one I was talking to you about last time."

Brandon nodded to her. "My assistant has spoken quite highly of you, miss…"

"Maria," the shrine maiden finished for him. "It truly is an honor to speak to one of the world's greatest trainers."

"So you watch over the Snowpoint Temple," Brandon acknowledged. "And you have extensive knowledge of Regigigas?"

Maria bowed to him. "I believe I may be able to help you in seeking what you find. You are aware of the legend behind Regigigas, correct?"

The much-coveted and rare book about Regigigas was brought up for Maria to see. "I've been following this book, which appears to be the only known book on that subject in every library across every region," Brandon informed her. "I already had some knowledge of the legend, such as the creation of the three subordinate Regis and how it towed continents with ropes, but it appears that there is much more to the story than that."

"Indeed," Maria affirmed. "Regirock, Registeel, and Regice aren't merely subordinates of Regigigas; it is also their duty to protect Regigigas from outside harm as it sleeps."

"So it's sleeping presently, you say," Brandon pointed out. "You know where Regigigas is?"

Maria nodded. "Legend has it that Regigigas and the others saved the Sinnoh region eons ago from a catastrophic volcanic eruption which destroyed a majestic forest that once existed in this area. Through the efforts of Regigigas, the rest of the region was saved. Afterward, Regigigas disappeared within the same bright, bluish light in which it miraculously came from. According to legend, Regigigas now sleeps within a precious jewel orb. Regirock, Registeel, and Regice transformed into a triad of pillars that protect the orb from malicious outside forces."

"A bit more detailed than what was written in this book," Brandon commented. "But I currently have a Regirock, Registeel, and Regice in my possession. If this legend is true, then there was a previous generation of the three Regis…"

"It is merely a legend," Maria reminded him. "But I've watched over this temple for years as it is a tradition in my family. The orb rests upon a pedestal where three large pillars surround it. Each pillar is purely made of the respective elements… rock, steel, and ice. My family has kept the shrine sacred for centuries now, as the temple is not exactly a secure residence…"

Samuel blinked upon learning about this. "Is that why it's so hard to find information on Regigigas? To prevent people from trying to disturb its resting place?"

"Precisely," Maria sternly answered. "The Snowpoint Temple is by no means a venue for tourism; even the residents of Snowpoint City respect that. If Regigigas' location was to be spread out across the world, thieves and others of ill intent would swarm this shrine, which has little in the way of defense for the sake of preserving this ancient establishment."

"A very wise move," Brandon commended her, but in the back of his mind he realized what Samuel meant about Regigigas being a tricky one to capture; how it in the world could he convince Maria to surrender the precious host of the sacred temple and leave the burden on his hands alone? "You and your family have done well to preserve this establishment, Maria. Would it be imposing of me to request a visit to the Snowpoint Temple?"

Though Brandon feared Maria would turn him down, he felt at ease when she gave him a warm smile. "Your assistant has told me much of your background as an archeologist in addition to your reputation as Kanto's finest Frontier Brain. It is only natural that you've been drawn here to Sinnoh, seeking the temple hosting a Pokémon so closely connected to the ones in your possession. You are always welcome to the temple, Pyramid King." She looked so gentle and trusting… almost too quickly, Brandon thought. "I know you will respect it… and I feel that you were destined to come here one day. Will I be seeing you two in the near future?"

"We're on our way as we speak," Brandon replied with confidence. "Shall we decide on a point where we will meet?"

Again, Maria looked completely agreeable and flexible to this arrangement. "There is a large clearing a few miles beyond Snowpoint City's limits that is situated between the city and the temple. I will escort you personally to the temple."

Samuel looked closely at the digitized maps displayed on the new GPS system he installed into the control room. "From the sounds of things, you're talking about the Valhalla Plains, right?"

"Yes, let us meet each other properly in the Valhalla Plains," Maria affirmed. "Let me know when you are about to arrive, and I will be punctual with my arrival as best I can."

"No pressure," Brandon assured. More than anything, he was grateful to get a chance to access this temple, thus had no heart to be stiff and professionally stern as he often was with others. "We look forward to meeting you, Maria."

"The feeling is mutual," Maria assured him, giving the Pyramid King one final bow. "I will see to it that we shall cross paths when the time is right."

This arrangement seemed to be going well so far… "No sooner and no later, Maria. Until then."

After one final bow from the shrine maiden, the call had ended. Both Brandon and Samuel remained silent for a while as they assessed their situation at hand.

"So you probably figured out why I said pulling this off won't be easy," Samuel finally said, looking to Brandon. "Nice as she is…"

Brandon did not at all feel confident about his chances, not expecting a moral roadblock to threaten his progress on this long journey he embarked on. "I can't help but wonder what the consequence would be for awakening Regigigas," he admitted. "We are not hostile, but even so…"

"I really doubt she'll just let you have Regigigas," Samuel told his boss, painfully honest in his tone. "Your qualifications are second to none, but that probably won't be enough…"

"All we can do is keep a low profile in regards to our motives," Brandon decided, sighing heavily. "Best not to give up before we even start. We've already realized that failure is not an option in this mission, Sam."

Samuel nodded in agreement. "It's a good excuse, but the committee's going to want _some_ kind of result they'll be willing to pardon you for. Not to mention we'll have to be careful about how far we spread out this information…"

"That's right," Brandon realized. "Maria's kept Regigigas largely a mystery to the world in order to prevent the temple from being overrun. We can trust Professor Oak with this undeniably, but otherwise…" This was where being antisocial came in handy; Brandon at least was fully confident that he wouldn't let this precious information slip into the hands of untrustworthy people.

"We can keep a secret," the Frontier Brain assured his assistant. "It's too early to concede defeat at this point, so let's set our minds to our goal and think of a way to appeal to that shrine maiden. The fact that she respects us already gives us an advantage."

Reluctantly, Samuel nodded. The sudden weight of morality was set upon his shoulders just as heavily as it was on Brandon's, but he was also a witness to just how displeased Brandon's fellow Frontier Brains were with his actions. Samuel knew he wouldn't be able to do anything to help his higher-up if this mission were to fail for any reason.

While that worry lingered within Brandon as well, the detailed information he received from Maria was intriguing… particularly the part of the legend that insinuated that there was more than one set of Regi subordinates out there in the world. Or perhaps something else… the theories simply fascinated him.

"We're ready for liftoff," Samuel reported, setting the Battle Pyramid's course straight for the Snowpoint Temple. "From our position, if the weather cooperates, we should be arriving there sometime tomorrow afternoon."

For once, Brandon preferred not to rush things. "Good. We'll have some time to think this over before we meet her." He looked to Samuel. "Keep a steady course, but there's no need to rush, understand?"

"Completely," Samuel nervously agreed. Though he was more than familiar with just how amazing Brandon could be at times, it was hard to tell how well he would fare with a moral issue. After all, this was the man who went several years without even seeing his sons in person.

Knowing that he would soon be in Snowpoint City, Brandon remembered Paul's promise to destroy him in battle the second the two crossed paths in Sinnoh's northernmost civilization. That promise was made a month ago, making Brandon briefly wonder if Paul would really still be in Snowpoint City, given that Paul surely would have made it up there even by foot much sooner than that. He was completely unaware of the several mishaps that impeded Paul's progress, but Brandon also figured that Paul, even after winning his seventh badge, would wait for his father.

For rarely being around his own sons, Brandon knew them both very well as if had had been living with them all this time. Paul in particular... for all the similarities they shared, it wouldn't be a stretch to say Brandon knew Paul better than Paul knew himself.

Eager as Brandon was to face his fiercest child, he kept his priorities straight. After all, this battle would be an uphill battle for _Paul_; not him. There wasn't much need for Brandon to be concerned about, and if Paul were to surprise him, Brandon would be more than pleased. The battle was just a little treat for him to enjoy for this lengthy, arduous journey; as such, it was shoved into the back of Brandon's mind as he used what hours he had remaining to think of a way to appeal to Maria and finally capture Regigigas.

* * *

Around the same time much further south in the humid, swampy dwelling known as Pastoria City, Conway – or rather, "Colin" – had just stepped outside from the Pastoria Gym. He admired the gleaming Fen Badge in his hand that he had just earned from Crasher Wake after a hard-fought battle. While the likes of Paul and Ash had little to no trouble with this particular Gym Leader due to overwhelming him with strategies based on type advantages, Conway's current team didn't really have much in the way of super-effectiveness against Water-types. At the same time, save for Aggron, Conway at least didn't have a team completely susceptible to Water-type moves.

Thankfully, Conway made up for his lack of experience with his abundance of knowledge; since the night where he and Paul concocted plans for combating Maylene and Candice, the rogue trainer decided he would do thorough research of each Gym Leader he would face prior to battling them. As such, Conway had a plan for dealing with Crasher Wake, though it necessitated him to teach his team a new move or two (particularly Electric-type moves such as Thunder in conjunction with Rain Dance for Castform). Cases like Quagsire that made it even more difficult for Conway to land a super-effective hit were dealt with via the strong Psychic-type moves he already had in his arsenal. Crasher Wake was strong, but Conway managed to outlast him through his resistances to Water-type attacks in Slowking and Castform in its Rain incarnation while strategy took care of the rest.

His methods earned Crasher Wake's respect and was wished well with his pursuits to qualify for the Sinnoh League. Though Conway was interested in the prospect of participating in such a prestigious event, it was going to be televised across the entire Sinnoh region and that was something Conway knew he had to avoid if he wanted to keep his status a secret from his family, friends, and enemies. It was still quite a while before the Sinnoh League Conference would commence… perhaps if Conway dealt with Sloan before that time, he would entertain the thought of going after all… he had chosen the path of battling out of necessity, though as far as pure preferences were concerned, Conway was still a little unsure as he enjoyed Contests just as much as traditional battling.

The possibility of facing Paul in the League, however… or even Ash, Dawn's traveling partner… those were all interesting prospects to think about trying for if Conway could return to his normal life in the near future.

However, to get that far in the League and even to _make it_ there to begin with, Conway knew he was going to need some more variety in his team. Not that he was dissatisfied with Slowking, Aggron, Heracross, Castform, and Smoochum (though Smoochum remained to easily be the least-experienced of the team and thus the one that needed the most work). There was still at least one more spot he needed to fill and more likely than not he would need to use Maylene and Reggie's services with the daycare in order to store future Pokémon he would capture. What he had now wouldn't be enough to conquer every major Gym Leader in the region for certain.

The difficulty of the battle with Crasher Wake was indicative of that. While Conway pondered over that issue, he also wondered where he would go next from here. One of two obvious options was to go east towards Sunyshore City (coincidentally where Paul would be aiming for once he conquered Candice's Gym) and face Volkner… though Volkner had quite the reputation across the region. Though he was widely considered Sinnoh's strongest Gym Leader alongside Byron, he had something of an attitude that made him very unpopular. Regardless, Conway knew he wasn't ready to take Volkner on yet with only two badges under his belt… not to mention his team was pretty weak against an Electric-type-themed team. He wisely decided to hold that match off for later, as most trainers did.

Pastoria City hosted a site called the Great Marsh: the Sinnoh region's answer to what most others would simply name the Safari Zone. While an unpleasant place in general with trainers forced to wade in waist-deep muddy water while practically glued to the surface with the muck covering it, it was an ideal place for catching a wide array of Pokémon species of varying types that Conway lacked on his side. He certainly didn't need any more Psychic-types, but Conway figured it would be beneficial for him to have a Grass-type like Shroomish, Carnivine or Tropius… or perhaps Poison-types like Gulpin, Roselia or Drapion.

But successfully capturing anything in the Great Marsh required a great amount of patience and skill; time and effort Conway couldn't afford to waste when he was so far behind in collecting badges. Most trainers were already past the halfway point as it was; Conway was going to need to work overtime in order to catch up. He was certain fate would bring him his next destined teammate, much like how he ended up with Smoochum. It was an illogical belief, sure, but Conway had gone through so much and learned that most of what he thought he knew turned out to be wrong all this time that he was willing to try anything at least once… even daring to dream. At least it gave him the strength to press on.

Finally, Conway decided he would face the less-extreme but more widespread swamps beyond Pastoria City to the west, circle around and reach Hearthome City next. This city was significant to Conway, having hosted the Tag Battle tournament in which he became a runner-up and was able to show off his glorious skills on live national television across the region… even if it wasn't appreciated by the people who were important to him. Not to mention it was the city where Conway first met Paul, Dawn, Ash, and Brock; the first two of which became very significant people in his life now… or were, before the tragedy with Mars struck. Now Conway was dead to Paul and might as well be dead to Dawn as well; it was a long time ago when he last saw her in person and the widespread news of his death might have gotten her attention. It just wasn't worth the risk, much as it pained Conway to force Dawn out of his goals _and_ his life. But he was convinced he was damaged goods now anyway, all thanks to Mars. Conway refused to inadvertently drag Dawn into the dirt right with him; he knew she deserved better than that.

With no travel mate to interact with or slow him down, Conway made swift progress in his journey back to Hearthome City; obviously, his goal for this location would be to earn the Relic Badge from the eccentric and foreign part-Gym Leader, part-Coordinator, part-absentminded wanderer, Fantina. This classy woman was a specialist in Ghost-type Pokémon; something Conway knew he could manage with the team he had. Though it was risky as Ghost-type moves would be just as dangerous to Conway's Slowking and Smoochum as their Psychic attacks would be to her Pokémon, the nerdy trainer was confident at least in Slowking's abilities and thought this would be a good time for Smoochum to start taking notes on the sidelines. Since many Ghost-types were partly Poison-typed as well, this was a perfect opportunity for the Steel-type side of Aggron to completely negate any attacks of that type. Only Heracross was mostly unsuited for taking on this kind of challenge. Regardless, unlike with Crasher Wake, Conway felt completely secure in type coverage and security with what he had now, which made him quite eager to meet and defeat this foreign Gym Leader.

Still, though the journey progressed more quickly solo, Conway still couldn't help but feel a little lonely all this time. Contrary to his nerdy nature, Conway did not enjoy being this socially withdrawn.

Conway had little time to dwell on his situation any further as he heard a panicked "Make way…!" from a distance. Briefly startled, Conway looked around, trying to find the source of the voice, but was soon cut off from that as somebody crashed straight into him; Conway was absolutely flattened on the ground by a young man who appeared to be around his age, though that was certainly not the detail Conway cared about right this second.

Not far behind the boy pile was an orange bicycle, which looked as if it would fall to pieces at any time now, apparently being stopped by a rock jutting out from the ground, which promptly launched the rider straight into Conway.

On top of Conway was an energetic blond who was perhaps just a tad taller (and possibly a tad older) than him. Conway didn't get much of a word in edgewise before the stranger rudely cut in first to complain.

"What are you, deaf?" he whined, forcing himself off Conway's body while struggling to get back on his feet. "I told you to get out of the way!"

To this, Conway just frowned. "What exactly was stopping you from just making a turn to avoid me completely? All this road and you insisted on getting right behind me?"

"What was that?" the boy was immediately confrontational, it seemed. His large and furiously energetic (yet borderline adorable at the same time) amber eyes glared down upon his victim. His orange and white striped shirt matched his eyes while his distinctive green scarf blew with the gentle breeze coming by just then. "I don't like your tone. Just for that, I'm giving you a fine!"

While Conway managed to get up, he almost fell down again in bewilderment upon hearing that statement. "A… a fine?"

"And don't make me double it!" he threatened. "Nobody delays Barry's quest for greatness without paying the price. Now hurry up and pay your dues! You've got ten seconds!" He looked down at his Pokétch, which seemed to be a more advanced model than Dawn's. For some reason, he skipped the first half of the countdown. "Five, four, three, two…!"

"_Wait!_ Just… wait!" Conway urged, already frustrated with this guy, holding his hands up. "Who are you to _charge_ me for inconveniencing you? You certainly don't look like royalty."

"Shows what you know! And you weren't paying attention!" Conway's new acquaintance pointed out. "The name's Barry and don't you forget it!" Just then, he looked intrigued. "And you! You look kinda familiar."

That word… "familiar"… was an instant red alert in Conway's head. He assumed this meant Barry had seen the news of his apparent demise and recognized him, which would compromise his entire mission if Barry were to spread this news around. "F-familiar…? I'm sure it's just a coincidence," Conway insisted. "I don't get out much."

"No, I've definitely seen your face before!" Barry countered, invading Conway's personal space to get a closer look. The fact that Conway was wearing Paul's clothes as part of his "Colin" disguise went straight over Barry's head, ironically enough. "Believe me; I know a loser when I see one."

Conway couldn't believe this. All because Barry was too ignorant to avoid a crash, he had to deal with this hyperactive boy nosing around in his business, scrutinizing him. "I don't have to take this, you know," Conway reminded him. "I can't _pay_ your fine anyway since I'm out of cash and I'm certainly not giving you my credit card…"

"Aha!" Barry had reached an epiphany. "I get it now! You were in the Hearthome Tag Battle Tournament!" Apparently Conway's words went in one ear and out the other. "You were that obviously newbie girl who lost to Paul!"

The fact that Barry knew Paul was quickly overridden by the fact that Barry assumed Conway to be the wrong gender. That statement was enough to make Conway fall over again, aghast at the statement. "A… a girl? Are you serious? I don't even _sound_ feminine!"

"Huh, for real?" Barry asked him, genuinely surprised by his mistake. "No, you were definitely in that tournament…" It took a moment of awkward silence for him to realize the truth. "Ah, alright! Now I got it!" he said with a smirk, pointing directly at Conway. "You're that _hopelessly geeky_ trainer who lost to Paul!"

His position changed suddenly, now looking up at the sky thoughtfully. "Isn't that what I called Dawn when I met her? I got you two confused, for real? Oh well; easy mistake…"

"For _you_, maybe!" Conway shot back, highly offended and not knowing that he was giving himself away. "It would be obvious to anyone else that I'm a boy!"

"I don't have time for your gender issues, man," Barry brushed off; his tone careless. "Alright, I think I've figured it out. You're not denying it!"

At least Barry wasn't identifying Conway with the recent death in the news incident… at the same time, he wasn't sure just how honest he could be with a guy like this and if he would really be safe admitting to participating in the tournament. But Barry seemed sure of himself now, and Conway really was in no mood to play mental games with a simpleton.

"Alright, _fine_," Conway quietly admitted through his clenched-together teeth. "Yes, I did participate in that competition. I'm Colin."

"Nah, that's not how I'm remembering it," Barry denied, pondering over this detail. "That's similar, but not really pronounced that way. Kinda sounded like "highway"…"

The last thing Conway wanted to do was give his real name to a total stranger at a time like this. At the same time, he was certain someone this simple-minded couldn't conjure his real name from thin air. "You just got my gender wrong and now you think you know my-"

"Conway!" Barry realized. "That's right! Mash "Colin" and "highway" together and you get "Conway"! It's so obvious!" He smirked at the shaken trainer before him, who couldn't believe he would deduce something like that on his own. "So what, is that like your secret alias to make you cooler or something? You'll never surpass Paul!"

Ah, the other relevant and surprising topic that had yet to be addressed. "You know Paul?" Conway asked finally, hoping to lure Barry away from any topics related to his true identity.

"Never met him, but I saw him wipe the floor with you on TV that one time and he just looked _awesome_," Barry recalled. "He won the whole tournament!" Neglecting that Ash had won alongside him… "One day I'm gonna be as strong and cool as he is," he proclaimed before holding his thoughts once more to realize something. "Oh, so you're saying you know him, too? Well, of course you do. You battled him and you're wearing clothes that look like his…"

Barry, in spite of his harebrained mannerisms, was awfully quick to pick up on details that he really cared to find. "So what, are you trying to be his biggest fan? Aren't you a little old for doing stuff like that?"

Conway was about to respond before Barry cut him off again. "Ack, I don't have time for chit-chatting with a poser! You just wasted a huge load of my time! I ought to fine you indefinitely for this!"

"Will you shut up and stop interrupting me?" Conway finally barked out, his patience having run out. "And stop expecting me to pay you; it's not going to happen!"

"Alright, nobody asked you to be that rude!" Barry countered, pointing at him. "Fine, if you're not going to pay up, then battle me!"

All of a sudden, a challenge to battle within a few minutes of meeting each other…? Actually, that was pretty common practice for trainers. It was merely something Conway went out of his way to avoid until he felt he was a safe distance from his hometown to risk being seen by someone who might have seen the newscast or simply remembered the incident. "Wait, you mean right now…?" Conway was still a little slow on the uptake of accepting challenges, nonetheless.

Barry whined and threw a fit while standing in place. "Just accept the challenge already! I'm in a hurry, you know…!"

"If for nothing else but closure on a case like _you_, I suppose I must accept," Conway conceded, taking out one of his Pokéballs. He smirked just before aiming to throw it; "What a perfect time to test your readiness before the next Gym…"

"Like I said, I gotta get a move on to Hearthome City!" Barry reminded Conway, though this was the first time he brought up his destination. "So let's make this a three-on-three, alright?"

The fact that he and Barry were headed for the same location only deeply bothered Conway, as he was not eager to run into this guy a second time after this encounter. Still, if he could defeat this opponent badly enough, Conway thought he could perhaps convince Barry that he simply isn't ready to face Fantina yet; as shallow and simple-minded Barry came off, Conway had a hard time picturing his new acquaintance as anything more than a first-year trainer with no more than a couple of badges earned.

"Just what I had in mind," Conway agreed. "By all means, go right ahead…"

"Fine!" Barry conceded, taking out a Pokéball before throwing it. "But only because you look indecisive! Let's get an early lead, Staraptor…!"

Seeing the Predator Pokémon made Conway smirk self-assuredly, as this further indicated that he was making the right first choice. "Your perceptive skills are betraying you," Conway told him before finally unleashing his competitor. "Smoochum, it's time to make your debut…!"

Barry just blinked, staring blankly at the cute little Pokémon that was designated his Staraptor's competitor. The fact that Smoochum by both her types was superior to Staraptor went right over his head as he couldn't believe he was facing something that looked so docile. The fact that Conway mentioned "debut" made it obvious that this was Smoochum's first battle against a trainer.

Conway was confident, knowing the advantage was on his side in spite of Smoochum's lack of experience. He was ready to make Barry regret that the two had ever met and he would do so in the most embarrassing way possible: by beating him with an unseasoned battler in Smoochum.

Smoochum was too eager at the prospect of battle to figure out what was going on in her trainer's head, but was ready to fight nonetheless.

"You're fighting me with that?" Barry asked Conway before slowly growing angry. "Wait, what… what is this, are you trying to insult me?"

"In the midst of battle? What a rude thing to do," Conway remarked, very amused. "But try and focus on the battle now. Smoochum, Confusion!"

Barry's reaction time was clearly lacking as he was far too late to give Staraptor a command before it was caught in the Psychic-type trap, only able to move as Smoochum wished it to. "Huh…? Staraptor!"

"Display the power of gravity before our guest, please," Conway calmly commanded; his smile widening as Staraptor swiftly hit the ground, and hard. Smoochum couldn't hold Confusion any longer, but looked happy at her early success.

"Gah!" Barry cried out, flailing in panic over a fierce first blow. He knew this wasn't the time to be joking around now; Conway apparently was a legitimate threat to him now. "You're not getting away with that! Come on, Staraptor!"

"I prefer Staraptor when they stand still," Conway suddenly said, somewhat randomly. "It's easier to admire their frightful beauty that way. Smoochum, Powder Snow!"

Of course, his aim was to confound his human opponent with vague words while his Pokémon took advantage of the break in the battle to attack preemptively. But this time, Smoochum was far too slow to effectively freeze Staraptor in time, as it broke free with ease and was soon high in the sky once again, circling over the Kiss Pokémon.

"Just for trying that, you're getting a _mega-fine!_" Barry cried out, well in the midst of another tantrum. "Staraptor, take that girly thing down with Steel Wing!"

Conway didn't even want to guess what a "mega-fine" would be, but he had to quickly think of a plan for Smoochum to brace herself against this attack. Inexperienced as she was, it would be difficult for her to match Staraptor in a direct clash.

"Sing!" Conway commanded, hoping Smoochum would get that much out before the clash, but Staraptor swept in and slammed into the poor, young Pokémon full-force. Being super-effective, Smoochum was already in bad shape as her defenses were absolutely pitiful. Seeing this firsthand left Conway horrified as Barry looked disappointed.

"Geez, it's still able to battle?" Barry complained. "Alright, whatever. Staraptor, Close Combat!"

"No…!" Even with neutral damage, Close Combat was a devastating move that was far beyond Smoochum's abilities to withstand. A few stiff kicks from Staraptor's talons knocked the baby Pokémon unconscious.

"That's more like it!" Barry celebrated, pumping his fist into the air victoriously. "Hah, so much for type advantage! At this rate we'll be out of here within the next minute, Staraptor!"

Insane as Barry was, at least he loved his Pokémon, unlike a certain former companion of Conway's, which was in a way refreshing. Still, exchanging the inability to care for a lack of sanity and common sense seemed in more ways than one an unfair trade in his eyes. After a sigh of acceptance that he had been defeated, Conway recalled Smoochum back into her Pokéball and looked to it sadly.

"I was in a little over my head, I suppose," Conway admitted quietly. "My apologies. I won't let it be at your expense in the future…" Glaring at Barry, who was still as smug (and impatient) as ever, greatly fueled his drive to compete. It was hard to explain, but something about Barry greatly livened up Conway's competitive drive. As a result, he felt a stronger desire to win this battle. "So you're not a _complete_ imbecile," Conway somewhat complimented, which only made Barry frown back. "Good to know. This may not be such a waste of time after all."

"Bring it!" Barry challenged, shaking his fists. "And make it quick; I didn't battle just to hear you talk to yourself!"

Conway narrowed his eyes at this, unable to forget for even a moment why he wanted to defeat this guy so soundly. It wasn't going to be a complete shut-out, but Conway knew it was still early enough to make an impression, and the best way to pull that off would be to use his strongest, most reliable player on hand. "Come forth and conquer, Slowking…!"

Like Conway's previous Pokémon, Barry couldn't help but stare on, dumbfounded at his opponent's choice. "Wow, your taste in Pokémon is kind of… terrible, you know?"

"Famous last words," Conway replied with a smirk. "Slowking, Psychic!"

The much more powerful rendition of the Confusion attack was just as (and probably more) effective keeping Staraptor's movements completely controlled. Oddly, Conway wasn't doing anything other than keeping Staraptor in place for the first few moments, prompting Barry to complain again.

"Oh, come on!" he cried out. "This is an obvious stall-off! What, are your Pokémon just like you and too weak to throw a punch?"

Conway preferred to think of it as he was too "mature" to be throwing punches, but what was the difference? He made it no secret that he was more inclined to special attacks. "Strategic mental combat is an effective battling strategy, believe it or not," he claimed, unafraid to spill his own strategy out at a time like this because Conway had a feeling Barry would just forget it three seconds later and go off on a completely unrelated tangent. "Now, I just submitted you to the laws of gravity moments earlier… at this time, I would like to show you firsthand the laws of friction with objects in motion."

"Aw, I should've figured!" Barry grumbled. "A nerd _would_ submit me to the most boring stuff in the world right in the middle of a battle… they're the worst!"

Conway couldn't help but be amused with this. "Believe me when I say this will be anything but boring. Now, pay attention: the laws of friction are largely irrelevant when the object – in this case, your Staraptor – is under the control of Psychic. This means I can make it move much faster than it can naturally on its own. Observe."

After a signal to Slowking, Staraptor, still helpless in Psychic's power, moved several times faster than it could naturally as it shot up and down like a rocket in the sky and past a tree, where several leaves were shaken from their limbs once Staraptor zoomed past. Barry watched both in horror and awe, as this was rather interesting to watch.

"Now, say I put a huge rock in Staraptor's way," Conway hypothesized. "Do you think Staraptor will be stopped by the rock, or is its friction plus its mass even stronger than that and will blast right through the rock?"

Barry grasped at his hair after hearing that. "Either way, that's not going to end well with Staraptor…!"

"Indeed," Conway agreed, as he gleefully planned for this all along. "Slowking, Power Gem!"

A large, golden rock formed in the air as Barry looked on helplessly. "You wouldn't…!"

"You've been quite a pain today," Conway admitted, sounding almost helpless himself about the matter. "But trust me; this will be fun. You wouldn't believe how much it pays off to train a Pokémon to handle two attacks at once. Slowking?"

The Royal Pokémon nodded, knowing this was its cue. At the very last second, it released its Psychic hold on Staraptor in order to focus on forcing it back with the Power Gem attack. Staraptor was completely helpless all this time and had no way to make a difference even with its freedom back mere moments before it smashed into the massive, sparkling rock.

There was an explosion that followed this; trails of glitter from the rock rained down over the trainers as they watched on to see the result of this catastrophe. Staraptor did manage to force its way a short distance into the rock, but that was it. What remained of the rock smashed Staraptor ruthlessly into the ground, and needless to say it was going to be out of commission for quite a while.

Barry gaped at the sight for a while before coming to his senses and recalling Staraptor back to its Pokéball. Apparently he didn't handle defeat with even half the grace of Conway. "… Staraptor… I'm gonna avenge you! I'll make that nerd pay in more ways than one and win this for both of us!"

"Then go ahead; show us what you've got next," Conway invited. "Slowking here barely broke a sweat."

"I'll make you sorry for what you did!" Barry promised as he threw his next Pokéball. "Roserade, gimme a hand here…!"

This was an interesting choice, as the type advantages and disadvantages were even. Conway could use his Psychic-type attacks to exploit Roserade's vulnerability in its Poison-type while its Grass-type could critically injure Slowking's partial Water-type identity if Barry played his cards right. He was realizing by now that Conway wasn't only inclined towards special attacks; his opponent was also keen on keeping his Pokémon well-defended even without directly using defensive moves. So far most of Conway's blows have been aided by Psychic or Confusion. While Barry had more of a melee strategy, Conway clearly preferred alternative options… which made him quite a threat, much to Barry's surprise. By being comparatively passive compared to Barry's battling prowess, Conway successfully created an air of mystery around himself by mostly hanging in the background without doing too much. He was clearly one frightful contender, and even Conway didn't give himself enough credit in that regard.

After some consideration, Conway decided to keep Slowking in this round. "Very well; I'll stick with Slowking. By all means, take the initiative.

Asking Barry to attack was already suspicious, but Barry really had no other choice. He tried to shove his concerns aside and focus on the match. "It's your funeral, then!" A funny choice of words considering what Conway recently went through. "Roserade, Poison Jab!"

A bum rush strategy could succeed or fail depending on the situation. Barry wisely decided to overwhelm Conway with a never-ending stream of physical attacks which would force Conway to fight back by traditional means.

"Protect!" Conway called out, wondering why Barry didn't just call for a Grass-type attack instead. He was fully expecting something like Grass Knot or Energy Ball; certainly not Poison Jab. Slowking successfully surrounded itself in a protective barrier of light, blocking the first wave of Poison Jabs.

"Poison Jab, Poison Jab, Poison Jab!" Barry repeated, shouting at the top of his lungs. "Protect's not going to hold out forever! We'll force Slowking out and beat it into submission! Go for it, Roserade!"

Conway frowned at this, hoping Roserade would back off with a recharge and then finally use a Grass-type attack like a sensible trainer would call for. What Barry said was true; Slowking's Protect barrier would soon break and Protect had a good chance of failing when called for a second time consecutively.

All he could think of for the moment was to attempt to hold Roserade off until it tired itself out, making it child's play to defeat. It wasn't very likely it would work out as Conway wanted it to, but it didn't stop him from trying his best. Fast-paced as battles were, Conway knew it was best to stick to his plan, as improvising was very risky for players like him.

"Keep defending, Slowking," Conway ordered. "You can outlast a Roserade _easily_."

"Doesn't that pink thing just make you _mad_, Roserade?" Barry asked his partner, smirking. "I know it makes _me_ mad, and we're gonna make it go down no matter what! So just keep using Poison Jab! That geeky trainer doesn't know about the true power we've got inside!"

"True power?" Conway wondered out loud. "Are you just tossing out a red herring for me or are you going somewhere with this?"

Barry just pouted for a moment, putting his hands on his hips. "What, you claim to be smart and you don't even know who my dad is?"

"How is your father's identity even relevant to your own strength?" Conway asked him, looking skeptical. Father topics were never fun to talk about. "You're not your father; you're your own person and you make your own destiny."

"My dad's one of the strongest trainers in the world!" Barry proudly proclaimed. "I've got his genes and people say I fight like him all the time! Flattering, really. You know what the Battle Frontier is, right?"

Conway's jaw nearly dropped when he heard the words "battle" and "frontier" used together. "You're implying that your father is a Frontier Brain?"

"Who's implying?" Barry shot back. "It's the truth! My dad's Tower Tycoon Palmer of _Sinnoh's_ Battle Frontier!"

To this revelation, Conway gasped. Since the Sinnoh Battle Frontier was relatively new, Conway wasn't as privy to all its dirty little secrets like he was with the longstanding Kanto Battle Frontier. But now it suddenly made sense why Conway was so pumped and ready to take Barry on… while vastly different, Barry had a special way of getting underneath Conway's skin; a way only pulled off by Paul in the past. Both were sons of the most powerful Frontier Brains of their respective chapters… it was hard to say it was just a coincidence now.

"Man, you must've been living under a rock to not know that," Barry mocked. "Everyone knows me and loves me!"

Conway had a very hard time believing that; maybe it was also a personality clash, but Conway couldn't figure out how Barry was by any means tolerable to the general public. He wasn't coldhearted and antisocial like Paul, but Barry made up for that by being outrageously obnoxious and possibly even haughtier than Paul himself is. Conway also wasn't exactly keeping up to date with everything considering what he had been through in the past month. Taking care of Paul was a full-day job in itself and life had been nothing but sheer disaster for him since the two split ways.

"What is it with these Frontier Brain children?" Conway muttered. "I swear, Reggie's the only sane one and _he's_ emotionally unstable…"

"Hey, what's with the mumbling?" Barry complained. "We're in the middle of a battle; why do I even have to tell you all of this?"

Conway just rolled his eyes, looking back at the fight where Roserade was _still_ spamming Poison Jab at Slowking, who was clearly struggling to keep up its defensive barrier any longer. "Why in the world are you only using one move? And a Poison-type move, at that!"

"One move's all I need to beat you!" Barry replied. "You think you're so special with all your training and you think Roserade's gonna tire out… well, think again!"

Barry had a point: for all the minutes that had passed since this round's beginning, Roserade really didn't look all that burdened by the sheer amounts of energy it was putting into every single punch. "No Psychic tricks this time; we're gonna force you to fight!"

Conway was about to retort until he heard a piercing sound of something shattering; namely Slowking's barrier. Unprotected, Slowking was forced to take in these blows directly without being given much of a chance to counterattack. "Curses," Conway quietly grumbled, watching the battle closely. "I can't get Slowking to focus on a Psychic attack if Roserade keeps hammering at him. If he can't get out of there, we're sunk…"

"We've got 'im now, Roserade!" Barry victoriously proclaimed. "Just keep Poison Jabbing till there's nothing left!"

Cheap as this strategy was, it was genius against a trainer like Conway, who had no reliable method of countering it without possibly sacrificing his own Pokémon.

It was making Conway seriously consider a kamikaze move just to throw Barry off the trail. This opponent left much to be desired in regards to personality and brainpower, but otherwise was indeed more than the average trainer… the progeny of Frontier Brains seemed to be in a league of their own.

When it came right down to it, Conway was honestly out of options. Slowking needed to focus in order to truly use its power and it was impossible to do so while getting endlessly Poison Jabbed. A move that would take them both down would be abrupt and wouldn't require much time at all to execute.

"Guess we'll just have to shove back after all," Conway decided. "Time to let loose a bit, Slowking. Water Pulse!"

By sacrificing the control of its power, Slowking had a tendency to be unstable. This wasn't a strategy Conway often resorted to, but it was a desperation measure nonetheless. It at least allowed Slowking to conjure up power more quickly, and hence was able to haphazardly hurl Water Pulse straight into Roserade… which of course wasn't enough to keep Roserade down by a long shot, but it gave Slowking ample time to surround itself in a barrier of pure Psychic energy. While looking similar, this was nothing like Protect. A point blank ranged hit from Water Pulse at least knocked Roserade back considerably, but both it and Barry stared in shock as Slowking was no longer calm and collected.

"This is it!" Conway called out, pointing directly at Roserade. "Fire!"

Slowking was anything but slow on the uptake as it zoomed across the gap between its opponent in a split second and attached itself to Roserade, letting the built-up psychic energy loose, resulting in a massive explosion.

As the dust and smoke settled, the nerve-wracked Barry and Conway squinted at the battle site, seeing pretty much what Conway expected: Slowking and Roserade were unable to battle.

"I-… I swear, your Pokémon are all the same!" Barry spat out as he recalled Roserade. "Psychic this! Psychic that! A-and that was _cheap!_"

"No more cheap than your own strategy, thank you," Conway corrected as he much more calmly recalled Slowking, glad to have the odds evened out again. The final round would have both sides' Pokémon at full health and energy, which hopefully would conclude well. "Well, the next round should definitely decide the battle overall."

Barry growled and shook his fists. "Don't talk about what's obvious! What are you gonna have, another Psychic-type for me to smash?"

"Guess you'll just have to find out," Conway replied with a smirk, taking out his last Pokéball. "I'm rather interested in what you have in store for me as well."

"Like I'd tell you before you send yours out!" Barry barked back. He looked very stubborn about this minor detail.

To that, Conway nodded. "Understandable. Perhaps we should just send out our Pokémon simultaneously so we'll both be surprised."

"You're on!" Barry agreed, looking down at his Pokétch. "Alright then, in five! Four! Three! Two…!"

Conway nodded and threw his Pokéball. "Let's come forth…!"

Barry followed a couple of beats later. "It's your turn…!"

"Heracross!"

There were several moments of awkward silence after this; after all, it was rather unexpected on both sides that they would actually have the same species of Pokémon.

"Wh-what's this all about?" Barry cried out in confusion. "What are you, a witch? How could you know that I was going to send out Heracross next?"

That was by far the most bizarre accusation that was ever directed at Conway. "… Oh, you were _serious?_" he asked Barry after a pause. "I had no idea that you had a Heracross."

"Well, _one_ of us has to switch out!" Barry declared. "There's no way we can keep up the battle when our Pokémon look exactly the same!"

Conway hated to admit it, but Barry was right. "Well, you could tie your scarf around yours and that would solve the problem…"

"Not unless you tie something to your Heracross, too!" Barry protested. "That would be giving my Heracross an unfair weight handicap!"

"Well, unfortunately, I don't _have_ anything to tie around my Heracross," Conway pointed out with a sigh. "It's also not fair if one of us switches out because we'll have the strategic advantage over each other. We would both have to switch our Pokémon…"

Barry was not satisfied with this at all. "What are you doing with a Heracross, anyway? That's totally unlike you!"

Never mind that Barry only just met Conway today… what would he know? "You said you wanted something different," Conway reminded him. "So I chose Heracross. What in the world are _you_ complaining about?"

"I wanna see what your strategy is with something that's not gonna stall me or trap my Pokémon with Psychic!" Barry explained, still rather whiny. "And I've already decided on my strategy and I'm not gonna change my mind!"

"You're behaving like a petulant child," Conway grumbled. "You're insisting the match stays as it is? Our Heracross are even the same gender… what are the odds?"

Said Heracross looked at their trainers' bickering back and forth; both rather annoyed that their trainers were unable to tell the difference between them. Though visually, for humans it was rather difficult most of the time, many Pokémon species were offended regardless of the typical "All Heracross look alike"… disregarding the gender differences, of course, but that wasn't even relevant in this case.

"You're the immature one!" Barry claimed, pointing at Conway. "You oughta be honored to battle somebody like me! It's not every day you run into the son of a Frontier Brain!"

"Well, _you_ ran into _me_, first of all," Conway corrected for him, very annoyed at how Barry could be as astonishingly _wrong_ about his conclusions as he could be right. He couldn't help but notice the irony of what Barry was saying… for being a fan of Paul to this extent, Conway found it surprising that Barry apparently was unaware of the fact that his idol was also a Frontier Brain's son. "Second… your background remains irrelevant even now. So please stop wasting your breath and don't bring it up again. I only need to be told these things once." If even that.

"So even after learning that, you treat me like I'm not a threat?" Barry argued. "Like I'm below you or something?"

Conway was baffled at where Barry's mind must be at this time. "Er… what? I've never even implied that, much less ever said such a thing-"

"There you go, on the defense again!" Barry complained tiredly, not caring that he interrupted Conway at all.

"Because you keep accusing me of things that aren't true!" Conway barked back, about to lose his cool with this guy… he definitely stood out from Paul. Paul really never got Conway this flustered by himself. Barry was single-handedly driving him mad with his insanity. "Of course I'll defend myself against your lies!"

Barry just rolled his eyes and waved Conway off. "Whatever; you've _so_ got issues. Let's just get this battle over with before I start sending you bills every week!"

"Fine by me," Conway stiffly agreed. "Now, let's…"

Something was wrong… very wrong. The second Conway refocused on the battlefield, he realized neither Heracross were present. He looked around frantically before finally looking up, seeing them both high up in the sky, flying away. "Oh no…!"

"What the heck is _this?_" Barry cried out as he realized what was going on. "Where are they going? Why?"

"I have a feeling we may have offended them," Conway supposed, looking on thoughtfully. "All this time, we've been arguing and completely ignoring them… and maybe they wanted to battle after all."

"Heracross, you get back here!" Barry cried out, aiming his Pokéball into the sky. "Return, now!" Though he attempted to recall Heracross, it failed as the laser from the Pokéball simply couldn't go out that far.

Conway shook his head, knowing it would be hopeless to get them back unless they chased after their Pokémon to wherever they were headed. "We're out of range to get them back so easily," he told Barry. "We'll need to go after them."

"Then let's book it!" Barry decided immediately, forgetting about everything he had left on the ground. "Before they get too far away to catch up with…!"

Conway just gaped at how _speedy_ Barry was and groaned when he realized he'd have to push his limits just to keep up with the guy. Physical endurance was definitely something Conway struggled with, but he just had to grin and bear it in order to reach his Heracross.

Barry was both disappointed and unsurprised about this weakness. Just as he considered complimenting Conway, he decided against it once he saw how pathetic Conway looked just by trying to match his pace. "Come _on_, get the lead out, nerd! We're losing them!"

Conway just coughed and moaned in response, wondering if this was what cardiac arrest felt like. Eventually, the pair did lose track of the Heracross and petered out… Conway especially, as they stopped at a road to catch their breath.

"I'm blaming you for this completely!" Barry breathed out. "You're such dead weight!"

"S-sorry," Conway quietly said in a rather pathetic tone. He was laying flat on his back on the ground. "I've really neglected improving my own physical endurance…"

"Well, we're lost and we don't have any idea where our Heracross went," Barry grumbled, kicking a rock. "Great, just great!"

While Conway was catching his breath, he cautiously watched the sun, realizing (without needing a watch to check) that it was late afternoon heading into evening. With that, he was able to at least tell which direction was west. "Well, we were both heading for Hearthome City," he mentioned. "And it looks like our Heracross went off directly east from our position. I wonder if they smelled a source heavy with tree sap or honey… they do tend to act on their own when that happens."

"Hold on; since when were _you_ going to Hearthome City?" Barry asked him, sounding suspicious. "You can't be heading there… I am!"

"I was heading there long before you ran into me," Conway explained. "It has nothing to do with you. I'll be challenging Fantina."

"But not until _I'm_ done with her!" Barry shouted defiantly. "Sorry, but I've got a score to settle with that lady. You'll just have to wait your turn, and since I'm a lot faster than you, I'm definitely going to reach her before you."

Conway shrugged, because he honestly didn't care who got there first. "Whatever you say. But this _really_ isn't what we should be dwelling on right this second."

Barry blinked before it all came back to him. "Oh! Right, Heracross… uh, what are we going to do about that again?"

"We need to predict where our Pokémon are before we start the chase again," Conway instructed. "We won't find them if we run around haphazardly. How well do you know this area, Barry?"

"Uh, depends on what we're talking about," Barry answered, unsure of what Conway wanted from him.

Conway looked around, not expecting Barry to be of much help here. "Is there a forest or garden or a city nearby? To be flying off that quickly, they must have smelled something sweet."

"Well, let's see," Barry mumbled as he remembered his Pokétch had a map function that could make it easier to tell where they were. "If we're southeast of Hearthome City and north of the swamps, then the closest place from where we are would be… Angel Grove City. I think this road leads straight to it."

"Anything notable about it?" Conway asked.

Barry looked up and tried to think. "I know they've got a really big juice bar called Ernie's but that's about it."

Juice… yeah, that sealed the deal. "That's all we need to know," Conway assured, getting up and dragging Barry by the road immediately. "Come on! There's still time!"

Though taken off-guard from Conway's sudden revival, he followed along steadily. Mismatched as they were, they still were able to work together towards a common goal whenever necessary. They eventually made it to Angel Grove City by evening and were quickly directed to Ernie's Juice Bar, as it seemed their Pokémon had caused quite a commotion since arriving.

When Barry and Conway entered the juice bar, they were aghast at what they saw. Innocent civilians, what few still remained in the establishment after all this time, were backed up against the wall in horror as two ferociously hungry Heracross had torn the place apart to suck up every drop of juice they could find. Apparently they were very adept at scaring people off in order to have a monopoly on the juice and were very much enjoying their reward until they heard a loud, indignant "Heracross!" from both their trainers at once.

"How dare you be so rude!" Barry scolded, promptly taking out Heracross' Pokéball and managed to successfully recall it. "Good to see you're okay, but we're going to have a talk about this tomorrow; you better believe it!"

Conway just shook his head with disappointment as he recalled his own Heracross. "We didn't mean to hurt your feelings, but really, you're usually above this sort of nonsense."

While it was a relief to have their Heracross back, Conway and Barry both felt uneasy when they sensed a taller figure looming over them. Judging by the apron, bowtie and especially nametag, it looked like this was the bar's owner himself, Ernie.

"Ah, crap!" Barry cursed before turning around and bowing a bit, scratching his head. "Okay, right. We didn't mean for all this to happen. We're really sorry about your place, believe me! You'd believe the son of Tower Tycoon Palmer, right?"

At that attempt to pull rank, Ernie showed them both a bill with an outrageous price to pay… obviously for all of the damage and juice consumption.

"Ack!" Barry cried out. "Are you kidding me? What kid has that kind of money, I ask you? What, are you gonna make us _work_ off the bill?"

The smirk and nod on Ernie's part indicated that… yes, if it came to that, he would go that far.

Barry brought his hands together, looking up at Ernie with fear overcoming him as he tried to beg for mercy. "Oh, have a heart! Just put it on my dad's tab, okay? Come on, please…?"

Conway sighed, bumping Barry aside to get Ernie's attention, which he did very well considering he was holding quite the flashy credit card in his hand. "I'll cover the damages," he offered. "You take cards, right?"

Without a word, Ernie took Conway's credit card and made his way over to where the register was. It seems that was enough to sway him. "Be sure to count both of us!" Conway reminded. "I don't mind covering for him!"

At first, Barry was baffled that Conway would be carrying credit cards of all things and was even more bewildered in regards to his offer to pull him out of the fire that was this mess when all Barry had done was antagonize him all day. At the same time, Barry was finally beginning to feel a bit of respect for Conway as a person. After doubting his integrity all day, the creepy guy went out of his way to save both of them with no benefit for himself to reap. It was very… noble, oddly enough. More importantly, it was something Barry couldn't ignore.

"But that bill… that bill was huge!" Barry exclaimed. "Conway, you didn't have to…"

Conway smirked and shook his head. "Nice to see you calling me by my name rather than "nerd". But still, you're just as innocent as I am; there's no reason to make you needlessly suffer a punishment you don't deserve."

Barry blinked at that statement. "But if it were the other way around, I totally would've ditched you…"

That made Conway just stare at Barry; the look clearly said that he wished he could be surprised by this. "Well, I at least appreciate your honesty," he said flatly, clearly annoyed by the mere thought. "Don't worry about it. You should be happy I'm actually paying considering how much you fined me all day."

"Hey, yeah!" Barry smiled, very content with that answer. "What goes around comes around, huh?"

"Uh, sure… let's go with that," Conway awkwardly concurred. "Too bad we're losing daylight now. I may as well stay the night in the city."

"Count me in!" Barry cheered, practically inviting himself along. "We're both going to the same place anyway."

Conway wasn't sure what to make of this. "That doesn't mean you have to stick by me or anything," he assured. "No need to feel obligated."

"Nope; made up my mind," Barry said, obstinacy coming to the fore. "You're clearly a trainer I've gotta look out for and I've been bored out of my mind by myself, so that's that. You're coming with me."

As a traveling companion… Conway wasn't sure if he wanted to go through that again. While it would be immensely useful to have an ally close by him, it was… _Barry._ Conway could make do with the hard-to-get-along-with Paul, but Barry flat out annoyed Conway most of the time. It was hard to explain, still.

Then again, Conway figured a different spin on a traveling companion might do him some good when it came to getting over the Paul thing. He'd keep himself from getting too emotionally invested this time… and with someone as flaky as Barry, it would be best to not take his partnership to heart to begin with. Through this, Conway would learn from his previous mistakes, and who knows? Perhaps this would even enlighten him on how to appeal to Paul again someday. Even now, Conway didn't like the thought of _never_ seeing Paul again, and as crazy as Barry was over the guy, it was obvious that Conway wouldn't have an easy time getting Paul off his mind as it was.

"I suppose it would be a fulfilling experiment," Conway conceded, trying to remain open-minded about this. "So long as you behave, that is."

"Well, you'd better behave too," Barry warned. "I've still got my eyes on you, and if you try anything, I'll fine you and your kids and your grandkids and your great-"

Conway cut him off right there. "I get the point. We'll _both_ behave."

"So that's settled," Barry decided, extending a hand. "Glad to have you aboard, Conway!"

Paul never did anything like this… for once, Conway wished he would have. After smiling sincerely, Conway accepted and shook Barry's hand. "Here's to wishing for many happy days by tomorrow, Barry."

This was not something Conway expected to come up in his journey, and he was almost certain that he and Barry would be parting ways in the near future for whatever reason… most importantly, Conway didn't want to get Barry too involved with his problems. Obnoxious as he tended to be, Barry was still a relatively stand-up guy and didn't deserve to have his life put on the line because of Conway's issues with Saturn.

Still, in a way, it was a pleasant surprise… and Conway was willing to take any opportunity to be lighthearted and fun-loving as he freely used to be on this long and depressing journey of his.

The chase had taken a lot out of both trainers, thus once all dues were paid for in full, Conway directed Barry to the finest hotel Angel Grove City had to offer for a relaxing night of expensive pampering.

* * *

"Magmar, Flamethrower one last time!"

The Spitfire Pokémon fired off what must have been the twentieth attempt at a widespread Flamethrower attack under the command of Paul, who, in order to last in the cold in spite of his weakened condition, finally caved and contacted Maylene briefly to bring out his Fire-type (exchanging Weavile to do so) for support against the weather. As Paul's newest Pokémon, Magmar needed all the training it could get, anyway.

The end of the third day since Paul's ultimatum was nigh as the sun started to set under the horizon. Upon noticing this, Paul sighed and held up a hand to Magmar. "That'll do for today," he called out. "It's been three days now… this should be enough," he determined. "This strategy will _crush_ Candice."

He recalled Magmar back into its Pokéball and started to head for Snowpoint City, which was only a small distance away from where Paul was training. "It's not too late," he realized. "She's probably still at the Gym… if I could get this over with today…"

Then it would finally allow Paul to move on from this dreadfully frigid place and allow him to clear his mind of all the terrible things that have happened just by trying to reach Snowpoint City. Paul desperately wanted the ability to leave, and his strong desires would only fuel his drive to battle and defeat Candice properly. There's no time like the present, after all.

After resting up his Pokémon at the Pokémon Center for a few moments, Paul walked briskly towards the accursed establishment that revealed his true weaknesses to both the Gym Leader and a sizable crowd of local children. That was all in the past now… it wasn't easy, but Paul finally managed to push it in the back of his mind in favor of conquering the Gym he spent nearly a month trying to reach.

As he approached the Snowpoint Gym, he heard some commotion from a distance near the building, which proved that Candice was still there and available. However, Paul slowed to a stop as he got a good look at who was making the noise… who else would annoy him so badly (other than Conway)?

Ash Ketchum and his friends; all decked out in winter gear suitable for the climate (though it seemed Dawn still had something against wearing pants as her legs remained just as bare as they were in her normal outfit). Ash was all hyped up to the point where he forgot to put his coat back on once he was back outside, which Dawn gladly handed over to him. Candice was carrying a case of sorts… also present was a girl with short, spiky red hair. This was a new one for Paul as he was pretty sure he never met this friend of Ash and friends, but at this time he really didn't care.

But this was the kind of mindset Paul wanted to avoid; the mere presence of Ash alone would not deter him from accomplishing this task. Knowing it was too late to exit without making a scene, Paul took a deep breath of mental preparation before closing in on the group. The only sound coming from Paul was the sound of snow being crunched underneath his shoes, which was enough to alert the group of his presence.

"Paul…!" Ash called out with surprise, not expecting to run into him in a place like this.

Paul tuned it out completely and looked directly at Candice instead. The way his eyes pierced into hers was jarring… this was her first time seeing Paul this clearly and it wasn't really even hitting her yet. Still, her instincts told her to just play along for now until her memories would remind her of what this was exactly about. After a hard battle, she was understandably weary and therefore vulnerable to Paul's intense focus.

"So you must be Candice, the Gym Leader?" he asked politely, but the tone in his voice made it obvious that he was forcing it out… mainly due to his irritation that Ash was present _now_ of all times.

"Y-yes," Candice uneasily forced out her reply, still a bit shaken by this young man's presence. Despite his question there was a feeling of inherent knowledge within him… as if he weren't really asking a question at all. It was perplexing to be caught off-guard like this.

Paul figured he might as well be straightforward with his intentions here and now. Getting his point across as soon as possible was priority one right now. Within that Gym laid dark memories of the weaknesses that Paul was now using everything in the fiber of his being to hide. He kept a strong tone in his voice as if to tell the world… "No, there really isn't anything wrong with me after all." It simply wasn't true no matter how convincing Paul could make the statement sound… but it was the impression that counted.

"I challenge you to a Gym Battle."

* * *

**( TBC )**


	15. The Pyramid Prince's Perished Pride!

**(Notes:**

**Well, last chapter's shortness is made up for by this one being twice as long! That still makes it only the second-longest chapter in the entire story (chapter 8 still holds the title by at least 10k words), but I tried to make it worthwhile in every little way. Unlike the last episode adaptation, I included almost every scene and every bit of dialog from _A Pyramiding Rage!_, but of course with plenty of additions, expansions, and even shoehorning in some lines from my subbed copy of the original Japanese version... say what you will about the TCPI dub, but as far as episodes like this are concerned, they were almost totally spot-on with faithfully translating almost every like - even Team Rocket's for this particular episode (that tends to be where they start straying in most episodes). Speaking of, this chapter introduces Jessie, James, and Meowth, but aside from their very first scene I cut out the rest of their shtick for this chapter. It's pretty much unnecessary filler and this chapter's huge enough as it is; they'll get their full, proper roles when I get around to adapting the full battle episodes, though. **

**So yeah, there were only a few lines that made an awkward transition from Japanese to dubbed English, so I made sure to give those small parts their due. I must say near the end I was even a little surprised as I stumbled upon a small, interesting idea of a plot point that I never thought about until a few days ago. I did want to follow up on my promise and get this chapter out before my friend's birthday (and I'm two days early), but I also wanted to get this out before part 2 of the Ash vs Paul battle aired in Japan. I'm almost certain there will be backstory thrown in there since three episodes focusing on one battle means they're definitely going to take some time out for something (and Team Rocket are basically audience members by this point anyway, so no shenanigans of theirs to be expected, I guess), and since Paul's on his way out of the series within a few episodes, this is a good time as any for them to finally close the book on him, which means there should finally be some things explained about him. Hopefully, nothing that'll compromise the story structure here, but I'm sure I'll find my way around most quirks as always. Odds are that the Diamond & Pearl anime series will be completely over before chapter 16 comes out. While I'm going to be REALLY bummed to see Paul, Barry, and Conway go the way of Misty and May and Gary before them (and now even Brock's going!), the good side of this is that I'll likely have limitless freedom for what to do with Trifecta's main cast after the Sinnoh League. Paul still has a BF to go through in this story before the ultimate clash of this story will be reached, so it's gonna be a looooong haul, but as I see it, without needing to stick by the anime any longer means I can plan ahead much more quickly and that should prompt me to update faster. Of course, I'm going to have to alter the timeline I made for this series to include the captures of Conway's Pokemon and develop Paul's Pokemon used in the League, but that's going to be the fun part, no doubt.**

**I've waited a loooong time to get to this chapter, so it's a great relief to finally have the pleasure of writing it. It _might_ seem rushed towards the end, but mind you that this is just the first chapter of a major story arc that will stretch out until the end of the full battle with Ash. Anything that hasn't been clarified here will definitely be picked up on in a near-future chapter. Chapter 17's going to be a chapter that serves as the in-betweener from the end of _Pillars of Friendship!_ to just before the beginning of _Pedal to the Mettle!_ and yes, Pokemon Hunter J will be making her debut next chapter. Pretty soon I'm going to start up some kind of poll asking for opinions on how to handle the series of Brandon flashbacks that will occur sometime after this story arc ends. Mainly, it's whether or not to integrate it into the story or make it sort of a "sister fic" to Trifecta since it's going to be key in developing Brandon's character and his past, as well as Palmer's and Byron's, and even Paul and Reggie's mother so she becomes more than a cheap plot device. I dunno, just check my profile page periodically and see whenever I decide to throw that in. I put a lot of work into this baby, so hopefully you'll all find that it lives up to the hype!)  
**

* * *

"_So you must be Candice, the Gym Leader?"_

"_Y-yes."_

"_I challenge you to a Gym Battle." _

All those present at the entrance of the Snowpoint Gym stared on at the very determined Paul who had just shown up in the area a mere moment ago. Short, quick, and to the point… that was who he was; naturally, that left those surprised by his appearance a tad shaken. This was especially true for Zoey; for her this was her very first impression of Paul, and it was less than pleasant for her, to say the least. She looked to her mentor, Candice, wondering how she would address this stranger.

Candice had just come fresh off an intense four-on-four battle with Ash… naturally she was flighty anyway, but in her present state, she hadn't quite caught on yet that she very well knew who this person challenging her was. But that voice… that very distinct voice was subconsciously guiding her as she stumbled into an explanation to serve as her official response to the direct challenge.

"I'm sure you must have come a long way for this," she said, clearly uneasy in turning him down, but brought out a smile so that she wouldn't worry the others with her sudden, insecure sentiments… though Zoey had already well caught on. "But I just finished a battle with Ash and I'd like to give the gang a rest. … How about tomorrow?" Just by having to address him, she was sensing the familiarity…

Much to Candice's relief, Paul softened a bit as he consented to her suggestion. "Alright then. Tomorrow it is."

Though he was determined to settle the score once and for all as soon as he could, Paul could deal with another night of waiting… it would give him the chance to rest and review his planned strategy… again, nothing like Conway's, and not nearly as effective as his former partner's… but it was better than nothing, which was what Paul had the first time he challenged Candice. The result from that… Paul was sure to prevent an embarrassing loss like that in the future. Having no further business with Candice, he turned around and started to walk off to where he would be staying for the night. He was concerned with the confused and tense look on Candice's face, but was relieved that she still managed to keep her word and not treat him as a familiar.

If only his escape from this group could be this simple. Ash was definitely not settling for letting his rival go already. Though he knew better to bring up what happened in Squallville… knowing Paul, he would definitely blow it off. He opted for proving to Paul that he was indeed progressing as he held up his freshly-won Icicle Badge.

"Hey, Paul! Check it out; I just got my seventh badge," Ash told him gleefully, unable to contain the giddiness of winning a hard-fought battle not even an hour ago. "One more and I'm in the Sinnoh League! So how many do you have?"

Paul stopped, but didn't turn around to face the group again. But his eyes widened as his rival specifically mentioned that the badge he just won… was his _seventh_.

How many badges did Paul currently have again…? Oh, yes. Only _six_. Ash was officially ahead of him. Paul resisted the surge of pain that coursed through his body as that fact registered in his mind… he was definitely going to have to take more of his medication once he got settled in. Of course, there was no way Paul would admit to Ash that _he_ was the one behind in the journey to the Sinnoh League… even if only by a small amount. Paul may be terminally ill, but he still had shreds of his pride remaining.

It was time to drop the act and just be himself. "That's none of your business."

Following that, it was definitely time for Paul to get out of there as he briskly walked away, managing to get away this time.

"Hmph," Ash sulked. "What's his problem?" Not a day went by that Ash, whenever meeting Paul, would _not_ end up complaining about his attitude.

Brock was a bit more understanding over the matter, though he could tell Paul did seem to carry himself a bit differently from the time the group saw him last. "Ash, that's how he is," he said reassuringly. Really, that's all that could be said for anything related to Paul.

"Who is?" Zoey finally asked, already getting bad vibes from merely seeing Paul for the first time.

Dawn was quick to give her rival the details. "His name is Paul. He's really Ash's rival…" Dawn laughed hollowly at her own statement; even now she wasn't certain if "rival" was really the best word to describe Paul and his significance to Ash. "They seem to get into fights whenever they meet."

Though it had yet to reach that point, Dawn worried one day that a confrontation between the two would get physical. That was the last thing she wanted to see, though with Brock on hand, he would be able to patch Ash up should he suffer any severe blows. Still, it was scary for her to imagine the scenario all the same.

Candice meanwhile kept her eyes on Paul until he was too far away to see. Having heard his name multiple times now, remembering his voice and demeanor… it finally came back to her. She was glad she didn't spill any details on accident, but even though she had dealt with Paul in the past, this was her first time seeing him interact with his so-hated rival. She remembered Paul namedropped him a few days ago during their brief meeting. Though he spoke of Ash in such a vile way, it still shook Candice to see the friction right before her very eyes.

"Dawn… you and Zozo are rivals too," she said, sounding uneasy. "But it's nothing like _this_; that's for sure…"

It just then occurred to Candice… _none_ of Paul's peers knew about his recently-diagnosed condition. Then again, she remembered Paul wanted her to keep her mouth shut about that detail especially. Zoey remained unsettled by Candice's reactions, but as daylight was swiftly fading, it was time for the group to go their separate ways for the night.

* * *

Nighttime was no excuse to Paul; now that he had a little extra time for last-minute preparations before his Gym Battle, he knew it was important for him to go over and review his strategy. Just to keep his senses sharp, he decided to spend a little more time getting his newest Pokémon, Magmar, up to speed with the rest of his team by using Electabuzz, the only other Pokémon on his team that wouldn't be used for the Gym Battle. It was a shame, as Electabuzz had a powerful Brick Break attack that would devastate Candice's team, but Paul was still determined to challenge himself as much and he possibly could… now that he knew he was dying, it made sense why Paul needlessly made things so much harder for himself.

By undergoing these extremes… Paul felt alive. Otherwise, he practically regarded himself as the walking dead.

While Ash's presence in Snowpoint City bothered Paul greatly, it was likely only because this issue was stacked on top of so many other problems Paul was having right now. By having Ash around, it was just one more setback Paul had no choice but to deal with. Not to mention, seeing the familiar trio knowing they weren't aware of his most serious problem made it a bit harder for Paul to communicate with them than it already was. His illness prevented him from saying much to Ash at Squallville and even cost him the PokéRinger competition in a way. On the plus side, Ash had finished his business with Snowpoint City today… with any luck, Paul hoped, Ash would be out of the area completely by the next day.

"Use Smog!" Paul commanded Magmar, testing out the effectiveness of his Pokémon's move set. Magmar delivered, just as Paul expected with all of his Pokémon, as a thick, poisonous haze covered the field and all those present within it.

It was very dense; very widespread. Paul nodded with approval. "Alright. Electabuzz, try to find it and use Brick Break. Magmar, I expect you to defend."

He was looking forward to evolving Magmar very soon. Both it and Electabuzz were long overdue for it; Lairon aside, they were the only active teammates who had not fully evolved. Paul intended to have his full team at their maximum potential before it was time for the Sinnoh League Conference. However, Paul had neglected to actually rest yet even though he reached the Pokémon Center, instead opting to train immediately and go over his plans for Candice tomorrow… which also meant he neglected to take his medication. Most importantly of that, he did not take his antibiotics. As a result, once Paul was consumed with the Smog attack, he found himself coughing uncontrollably. Poison-type attacks were going to be risky measures from now on as long as Paul was a potential target. It was apparent his disease rendered his body extremely vulnerable to an array of bacteria and poisons.

Paul winced as he coughed so hard that he felt the tiny speckles of blood shooting out from his mouth. His lips trembled a bit as he realized what he had just done, completely forgetting about the training. Magmar blocked Electabuzz's Brick Break efficiently, but once the Smog move cleared out and they clearly heard their trainer in pain, they looked over to him with concern. Once he noticed, Paul stood straight and silently assured his Pokémon that he was fine. There was one important thing Paul always kept in mind… that a leader must not even _look_ weak. The last thing he wanted was his Pokémon doubting his abilities… even though his past actions had already given them all more than enough reason to worry for his health; both physical and mental.

"Adequate," he said hollowly, attempting to shrug off his ailment like he did with every other problem in his life. "Now, Electabuzz… see how _your_ defense holds up against Magmar."

Meanwhile, inside the Pokémon Center, many of Paul's peers huddled near a fireplace in the lobby. Brock (holding Happiny) and Dawn (holding Piplup) were filling Zoey in on everything they knew about Paul. Zoey's trusty Glameow was by her side as her friends exposited about this unsettling stranger she just met.

"Wow," Zoey remarked, somewhat in shock. "I've gotta admit I'm surprised Paul was Chimchar's first trainer…" Thinking it over, something else very apparent and odd occurred to her. "Whoa, and from what I can see, Ash and Paul couldn't be any more different if they tried."

"Which is exactly why the two of them couldn't _ignore_ each other if they tried," Brock pointed out. That much was evident given how many times those two had crossed paths in the vast region of Sinnoh over the past year. It was both fascinating and horrifying at the same time.

Dawn looked around, realizing something. "Speaking of Ash, where did he go?"

"Didn't he say he had to use the bathroom?" Zoey asked.

"That was at least half an hour ago," Brock noticed, sounding concerned. "We'd better check up on him."

Dawn nodded in agreement. "I mean, he can get distracted real easily; that's for sure… but where else would he go at this hour?"

Zoey stood up, frowning and clearly concerned. "From what you both have been telling me, I've got a feeling we should check outside first. If what you said is true, Brock…"

Brock understood what Zoey was getting at. "It's true that _he's_ staying the night here as well… wherever he is, Ash is sure to follow."

"Then we'd better hurry," Dawn sputtered, already paranoid and concerned. "If we leave those two alone for too long…"

"He'll have to answer to me," Zoey assured. Ever since the Wallace Cup tournament came and went, Zoey considered Ash a good friend of hers just as she felt with Dawn in spite of their conflicting viewpoints initially. She learned from him, Nando, and Fantina that there really was no problem with being a Trainer and Coordinator simultaneously. Not to mention this was _her_ turf; Zoey wasn't about to let any friend of hers be harmed in her neighborhood. She was the proactive one of the three, immediately heading outside while Brock and Dawn hastily trailed behind her.

It was like yin and yang with Ash and Paul, almost. Though it was an unpleasant, twisted version of the concept where the two were unable to compliment each other or maintain any form of balance. Aside from the recent trend of Ash's Pokémon evolving every time he battled with Paul…

Meanwhile, Ash was caught up in watching Paul train, having discovered him through the window just as he was leaving the bathroom. Even Ash could admit that his rival, in spite of his usual cruel ways, certainly had effective methods of training. It seemed true after all that Paul's Pokémon, his formerly-owned Chimchar aside, worked well with his brutal training and managed just fine without constant praise and support. Why that was the case was beyond Ash's comprehension, but he had a feeling Chimchar's designated replacement, Magmar, was going to be a fierce contender in future battles. Of course, Ash already very well knew of Electabuzz's capabilities since the day it defeated Pikachu as an Elekid… the very day he and Paul met. He had watched several rounds of Electabuzz assaulting Magmar with Brick Break; Magmar mostly staying on the defensive to build its endurance.

"Hate 'im or like 'im… Paul's really good at this," Ash admitted to Pikachu, who quietly agreed while watching the training alongside its trainer. "That attitude sure hasn't changed since we met, but y'know, we've learned a lot from him from all our battles, haven't we?"

Pikachu concurred with this, leaning against Ash. "I know you're down, buddy," Ash comforted. "Just wait; I promise you we'll beat him one day. I sure hope it's sooner than later…"

As he watched Magmar just stand there and take the blows, Ash remembered one of the most important lessons he learned from Paul… albeit indirectly. "Either way, I can't say he was wrong back when Grotle battled Honchkrow. I've got to understand how my Pokémon change after they evolve… I'll never stop believing in them, but I don't wanna let 'em down and think they're exactly the same as they were before evolving. Grotle, Buizel, and Chimchar could still evolve at any time, you know," he pointed out. "I can't be caught unprepared again if it happens."

He smiled; Ash knew he couldn't dwell on the past for long since he scored a major victory today. "Maybe Paul will open up a little more if I thank him again for what Torterra did," he hypothesized. "Grotle did an awesome job in our Gym Battle and I owe Torterra's training for it. Whaddya say, Pikachu?"

An ecstatic "Pika!" from his Pokémon's end told Ash all he needed to know. He smiled as his thoughtful and serious side quickly faded away into his happy-go-lucky self, as he usually was. Very few people could drag Ash out of his happy wonderland state of mind… Paul stood out as one who could do it effortlessly.

Ash proceeded to go outside to meet up with Paul at the training grounds. At the same time, Paul was focusing on Magmar again with its Flamethrower attack. It seemed Electabuzz's endurance was being tested this time around as it stood its ground in spite of the intense flames threatening to singe its bright yellow fur. Seeing Electabuzz handle such an attack this well placated Paul, at the very least.

"That's good," he remarked. "Now use Flamethrower and face the sky." Paul was testing Magmar's trajectory abilities, apparently. Magmar fired a perfectly angled pillar of fire from its Flamethrower attack high up into the night sky. Paul looked up thoughtfully as he took note of how much Magmar had improved over the past few days. It really seemed as if it was on par with the rest of his team at last. However, his only word to express this feeling was… "Good."

Just one short moment later, Ash reached Paul, attempting to catch his attention. "Hey, Paul!"

"Huh…?" Paul looked to the direction of that familiar, annoying voice and surely enough found Ash with Pikachu approaching him, though when Ash stopped running to him, the two were still a good distance away from each other.

Ash immediately jumped to the subject that was on his mind, paying no mind to what Paul was in the middle of just then. "Man, you should've seen how totally awesome Grotle was today. I wanted to thank Torterra again for the help."

Paul honestly wondered how Ash could possibly think that he would care about such a thing when he was right in the middle of preparing for Candice tomorrow. Figuring he would get no further with his training with his rival getting up in his business tonight, he recalled Magmar back into its Pokéball and trudged his way back towards the Pokémon Center; Electabuzz trailing not far behind.

Ash continued trying to get through to Paul as he walked by. "That battling style Torterra showed us a while back worked out really well."

A while back, indeed. Paul clearly remembered that night when Torterra went off on its own – quite odd behavior for Paul's starter – to give Ash's Grotle advice in order to deal with the drastic changes in its physique. This had nothing to do with helping _Ash_, per se; merely Torterra expressed sympathy for its fellow species… after all, years ago, Torterra had dealt with the same grief when it evolved to Grotle. Unlike Ash's Grotle, Paul's Torterra had no real support whatsoever from its trainer when this happened.

Of course, the way Paul trained, even if it had undergone some changes since he started, never had much in common with Ash's methods. Paul knew better to train his Turtwig for speed when he started out. He already had about four years of Pokémon experience when he began, all thanks to being with Reggie for most of his journey before his retirement. Still, in spite of these differences, Paul's Torterra was just as bad as Ash's Grotle as a Turtwig when it came to exploring things with its massive jaws… most of all Paul's head and various parts of his body. It agitated Paul to no end, but there was no helping it; this was the burden a trainer had to carry if they were to choose Turtwig as their starter Pokémon.

There were unique benefits and drawbacks to choosing any of the typical starter Pokémon in each region beyond the advantages and disadvantages of type. By choosing Piplup, as Dawn and Barry had, the trainer would have to deal with a Piplup's pride. It was no easy feat to bond with a Piplup and become the one thing that surpasses said pride. To choose Chimchar, like Reggie had, one would ideally need to be physically competent and patient. Chimchar could be mischievous or otherwise incorrigible, and as they evolved, their power would become increasingly difficult to control without a trainer's support and help. Chimchar ended up being a perfect match for Reggie, who could give such a Pokémon the unconditional positive regard a Chimchar would need to excel and mature… and it helped that Reggie was born naturally strong and agile; able to keep up with his starter even when it became Infernape. Needless to say, this did factor into why Paul was unable to work with his former Chimchar.

But his actual starter… Torterra, as a Turtwig, was a much better match for a trainer like Paul. The ability to assert authority, stubbornness, and a more calculated approach was necessary for Turtwig. This wouldn't stop the Tiny Leaf Pokémon from exploring absolutely everything possible with its jaws, so physical and mental endurance was a must. In spite of his susceptibility to illness, Paul was someone who would keep going until his body gave out.

When Paul's Turtwig evolved to Grotle and was no longer able to trap Paul within its jaws with ease, the at-the-time more immature Paul made sure to rub it in for a long time, "getting revenge", so to speak, for the countless times he had been bitten by his starter. When Paul's Grotle became Torterra, all hope was lost for Torterra to enjoy that freedom ever again. At the same time, Torterra significantly matured and felt a greater desire than ever before to protect its trainer.

Paul didn't like thinking about it, but Ash seemed to be the ideal trainer for his former Chimchar, yet at the same time he was showing competence with Grotle. Now being one badge ahead of Paul, it begged the question… was Ash beginning to truly measure up as a rival worth his time and attention?

Instead of searching out those feelings, which was making him feel sick already, Paul chose the route of hypocrisy as he passed by Ash. "You said you were serious about wanting to win in Snowpoint City," he reminded. "So why do you still need _Torterra_ to hold your hand?"

Ash's friendly gestures quickly gave way to his anger as he turned around, glaring at Paul as he passed by. In times like this, where he went out of his way to give Paul a compliment, it was extremely difficult to contain the anger he felt. Thankfully, after almost four years of training, Ash had come a long way. Ash of his Kanto days would have tackled Paul by this point.

"Using a _Grass-type_ in an Ice-type Gym…?" Paul wondered out loud, bringing forth the aforementioned hypocrisy. "I guess you chalked that up to blind faith."

Paul was very well aware of how hypocritical he was being, but silently justified his words with his belief that Ash really had no idea what he planned on doing in most battles and just winged it, hence he had no business trying to make a battle harder for himself. Paul, however… he had things planned out, and unlike Conway, Paul knew how to turn the tides in his favor if his strategies didn't go as planned.

While the rivals briefly conversed, Zoey and the others discovered them and silently watched and listened in on the conversation, though not overtly trying to hide. However, after hearing Paul's extremely rude response, Zoey couldn't take it anymore. She wasn't used to this kind of blunt rudeness from people, and seeing it get under Ash's skin made her blood boil. Zoey felt bad vibes around Paul since he arrived earlier that day… now she was ready to confront him.

"Stop right there!" Zoey shouted at Paul before he could completely re-enter the building. He paid no attention to the audience while going inside. "Just who do you think you are?"

In spite of her fury, Paul stood still, completely unfazed. Dawn had a feeling something more vicious was about to come from this confrontation, thus she was very quick to restrain Zoey. "Zoey…! Stop!"

"He has no right talking like that," Zoey growled lowly. Ash knew exactly how Zoey felt; this wasn't too different from how he reacted to Paul in their early days. He had mellowed out considerably since then, but he was no less angry about the situation, and the greatest struggle of all would be bringing himself to forgive Paul for what he had done to Chimchar in the past.

At a time like this, Ash knew he had to be the bigger man. After all, Paul had a Gym Battle upcoming. Ash would no doubt feel terrible if his short temper affected his rival's performance. He held up a hand to Zoey, signaling her to stop, though speaking gently. "It's okay, Zoey."

"Hmph." Paul was very ready to retire for the night now. Surrounded by chatty people, all of which he found annoying in their own special ways… now he knew for sure this redhead truly was no better than the ones he was already familiar with. He quietly used this opportunity to step inside the building and walk steadily down the hallway to where his room was. Electabuzz was quick to follow.

The others looked on; only Brock remained perfectly calm at this time. Zoey was still fuming. She remembered the unusual expression on Candice's face when Paul confronted them all earlier that evening. There was more to this guy than what there appeared to be, even though he and her mentor spoke as if they were meeting for the first time.

"I just hope tomorrow at the Gym Battle, Miss Senior wipes the floor with that jerk," Zoey muttered; loudly enough to get the attention of those who remained in the area with her.

She had no idea Candice had already been there and done that. Regardless, Zoey was already mentally making plans to speak to the Gym Leader the next day.

"Don't let the attitude fool you," Brock calmly warned. "Paul is a force to be reckoned with."

To that, Zoey just sighed and shook her head. "After everything you guys told me about him, it's frankly hard to believe. How can a guy who treats his Pokémon so poorly be a good trainer?"

"We're… still trying to figure that out ourselves," Dawn admitted, looking down at the floor. "But there's never a moment of peace when he and Ash meet up."

"I really don't mean to pick a fight," Ash said as he came in, smiling awkwardly. "He just acts like that no matter what I say to him. All this time I've traveled… I've never met a guy like him before."

Zoey narrowed her eyes as she continued to glare daggers at a now-empty hallway. "Someone needs to keep an eye on him. I don't trust him in a battle alone with Miss Senior."

Ash, Brock, and Dawn all looked to Zoey, but none of them said anything; they understood what she meant… she was worried for her mentor and wished Paul had never come to Snowpoint City.

Just as Paul swiftly swallowed down his medication (in the comfort of his own designated room, safe from any outsiders), he was beginning to wish he had never come to Snowpoint City as well. The journey to it was disastrous in itself, but his entire stay in the snow-covered civilization had been nothing but heartbreak, disappointment, and failure. Now Paul couldn't even muster up the will to tell himself there was nothing wrong with him… not when a group of people had just acted as if there were _everything_ wrong with him. He worried that he looked noticeably weak and that Ash (or more likely one of his friends) would catch on.

For anyone, it would naturally take more than just a few days to come to terms with a terminal illness that was physically crippling. Despite that, Paul still hated that he couldn't be an exception to that rule. He still wondered why it had to be _him_, let alone how he was going to tell his family about it. Under this much stress, Paul couldn't hide his emotions if he tried. The fact that he remained relatively composed just moments ago in the face of adversity brought his adrenaline to an all-time high, which only caused him to crash down even harder when he finally made it to his bedroom.

He was quick to retire to his bed, feeling the dizziness come to him as an initial side-effect of his medication. Paul hated having to rely on it, but the pharmacist at the hospital was pretty blunt about the consequences, so he really didn't have a choice. The anxiety of facing Candice again was daunting enough for this unfortunate young man, but now he had to learn on the eve of the fated battle that his incompetent "rival" has suddenly surpassed him. Though his loss to Ash in the PokéRinger competition initially didn't faze Paul that much, the misfortunes that befell Paul since then and the fact that he got absolutely wrecked by Candice's Abomasnow… whom Ash had presumably defeated… was giving Paul a newfound doubt in his abilities. His body was quickly breaking down and his feet were feeling heavier with each passing day. It was reasonable to worry that this terminal disease would play a part in making Paul fall from grace, culminating in Ash's long-awaited victory against Paul in a proper battle.

Paul felt so torn; he felt the desperate need of another person's support. Reggie… even Conway would suffice for this particular moment. Conway had been taking care of him since they started out, but Paul no longer had that luxury. At the same time, he wanted to be alone.

He didn't want anyone to see him like this… _ever_.

Sleeping proved to be difficult that night for almost all parties.

* * *

The following morning, Paul woke up much earlier than he usually did. Insomnia brought on by his anxiety disallowed him to get much sleep, anyway. However, Paul was in no mood to deal with the peanut gallery today; he wanted to have his Gym Battle with Candice in peace and leave this frigid city once and for all.

Paul was sure to take his medication as soon as he woke up so he would have the energy to accomplish what he set out to do.

Meanwhile, further in the city, Reggie was finally finished with his assigned task of bringing a snowed-in customer his Pokémon back. Additionally, being the good samaritan he was, Reggie and his Pokémon actually helped clear out the snow in Alex's (his young customer) neighborhood, allowing residents to easily make their way into the city and go on about their lives. It was a challenging task to uphold, but Reggie was more than happy to be of help since he had one of the best things one could have on hand during a snow emergency: Infernape. The rest of Reggie's Pokémon also did their part to clear the roads and side blocks that the city's snow plows were unable to reach.

There was no monetary gain to be had in this job that no doubt took days to accomplish, if only because the residents would not allow Reggie to put himself in any danger by overdoing it. Aside from that minor annoyance and Alex's family's insistence on letting Reggie stay the night at their house in a guest room while he worked, it made the breeder feel at ease knowing that these people would no longer be cut off from the outside world. Snowpoint City certainly was a dangerous place to live in at times…

One could say Reggie was easily sidetracked, but he wholeheartedly trusted that Maylene was doing a good job taking care of the Pokémon in Veilstone City, even though his ability to contact her to check on the status of his home was severely limited. Power outages were frequent until the snow finally let up shortly before Reggie finished his job.

Reggie didn't know it yet, but this type of work would prove to have a very positive effect on himself and his Pokémon in the near future.

All of that was behind Reggie now, however; he was quick to start the drive home this very same morning. Due to the very convenient timing on both parties, one might say it could have been fate that Reggie would _just happen_ to spot Paul on the sidewalk as he drove through the city. Genuinely surprised to see Paul _still_ at Snowpoint City (as Reggie figured he must have reached this place at least a week ago), Reggie of course couldn't resist honking his van's horn at his little brother to get his attention. It had been ages since he'd seen Paul in person; of course Reggie wasn't going to pass up the opportunity to catch up with him.

Paul stopped short and held in a gasp as a very familiar van pulled up next to him. Of all people to come across in Snowpoint City… even Ash's presence was not much of a surprise to Paul since he suspected Ash may have been coming up this way since their encounter in Squallville. But his own brother…? Surely there had to be an explanation for this. "Reggie…?"

"Hey, Paul," Reggie casually greeted after stepping out of the van. "How's it going?" However casual Reggie was behaving, deeper within his mind were many questions and concerns… not the least of which being, _where is Conway?_

"Well enough," Paul tersely replied. Now that the surprise of his brother's presence had worn off, Paul had to focus on staying casual himself, because he certainly was _not_ ready to confess to Reggie of his doomed fate, the hardships he suffered reaching this place on his own… but then he realized that Reggie had no idea that Conway was no longer with him. It was easy to make up excuses on the phone, but in real life… Paul had a feeling he was soon to be busted.

To make matters worse, Reggie was the type who had a sixth sense when it came to his little brother. It was only a waste of time for Paul to feign ignorance or "being okay"; Reggie would see right through it almost every time. "Well enough? I figured you must be having a blast here, Paul," Reggie assumed. "You've been here a while, haven't you?"

"Yes, well…" Paul looked to the side; one of his telltale signs of fibbing. "The weather here has been… dangerous for the last few weeks, I've heard."

"Glad to see you're playing it safe," Reggie said, sounding relieved. He believed this much, if only because he personally dealt with the dangerous weather his little brother spoke of on the way up. Still, both siblings did their absolute best to not behave in a way that was suspect, though naturally suspicion was on both their minds as their reuniting like this should not have happened under normal circumstances.

Paul remained focused on trying to expose his brother; that at least would hinder Reggie's ability to figure out what he was hiding. "So… what brings you up all the way here? Did you think I couldn't do it?"

"Actually, it's pure coincidence," Reggie said with a slight laugh, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. "I figured you'd be long gone by now… guess there's no wonder where you're headed next, right?"

"Sunyshore City," Paul confirmed with a nod. "I've conquered every Gym in this region that you had seven years ago… this far in, I don't intend to break the trend now."

Reggie smiled. "I'm flattered, really. I'm sure you'll do great there."

After a pause, he looked around. "So, is Conway off on another shopping spree?"

One of the dreaded subjects Paul didn't want to talk about, but knew he would have to at some point. If only it weren't now… not when he had a Gym Battle to focus on. After a moment's hesitation, he nodded again. "He blows so much money, it sickens me."

Ever sharp, Reggie caught the brief pause before Paul's response. He debated whether or not to interrogate Paul about it, much as he hated to do so. Thankfully (even on Paul's end), the brothers wouldn't be able to get much further into their conversation at this time.

Paul had only just started out towards the Snowpoint Gym, hence he was still right in front of the Pokémon Center. While Ash and his friends were watching the weather report, Ash overheard the van honking and was quick to look out the window to see what was going on. When he discovered who was outside, he couldn't contain the excitement he felt and had to tell everyone.

"Reggie!"

Brock, Dawn, and Zoey looked over to Ash who just shouted all of a sudden. They quickly stood up and followed Ash to the window; evidently the good weather was sticking around in Sinnoh for a while, which was all they really needed to know. When Dawn caught a glimpse of the familiar figure outside, she was instantly excited. "Wow, it's true!"

Like yesterday, Zoey had no idea why her friends reacted so strongly to people who were complete strangers to her. She was again quick to ask, "Who's that guy?"

"That's Paul's big brother, Reggie," Dawn happily explained to her rival. "He's a breeder down in Veilstone City."

"I'm sure he has his reasons for being here," Brock said assuredly. "That's a long way to come from…"

Ash simply grinned and raced to the front door, very eager to reunite with an important friend of his: the one who taught his Staraptor (at the time a Staravia, of course) Brave Bird, a move he's made good use of since his trip to Veilstone City. "Come on! Let's go say hi!"

Back outside, Reggie and Paul were discussing another topic.

"Have you gotten past the Snowpoint Gym?" Reggie asked, if only for the sake of clarification. For being in Snowpoint City this long, he figured defeating Candice was priority one for Paul regardless of how perilous the weather had recently been.

"Coming soon," was all Paul had to say about that; he obviously had no desire to confess to Reggie about his first failed attempt at the challenge. Not only was the end result catastrophic in that it confirmed his illness at last, but it was a pure blemish on Paul's record as well. Having all four of his Pokémon taken out with ease by _just_ Abomasnow… it was hard for Paul to contain the hatred that he felt for _himself_ for being so inadequate at the time.

"Well, keep in mind that Candice is tough," Reggie advised. In Reggie's days journeying through Sinnoh, which was eight years ago, the Snowpoint Gym was obviously run by another Gym Leader at the time when the young Reggie faced it. Candice was about Reggie's age, thus a beginning trainer herself during Reggie's conquest. When Reggie first reached Snowpoint City to earn his Icicle Badge (Paul was not with him, as this was merely a month or two before their mother passed on), Candice was a trainer he had to defeat before getting to challenge the Gym Leader. The cute little pigtailed girl adamantly declared to Reggie that she would one day inherit the Gym, so it was no surprise to Reggie at all when he learned a couple of years ago that Candice succeeded in achieving her goal.

Unlike Roark, Reggie wasn't _close_ to Candice, per se, but remembered her well enough to consider her a familiar and on the very rare occasion would catch up with her. What he remembered most clearly was the very intense battle he had with her back in the day. Even back then, Candice was all about the "kiai" and didn't hold back even an ounce of her strength. After all, she was facing a mighty type disadvantage in Reggie's at-the-time Monferno. The fact that she put up such a good fight was telling enough for the elder brother; she was indeed _tough_. Candice was a menace to face even with type advantages… now it was no wonder that she was an absolute nightmare to face with type _disadvantages_. Paul didn't lose to her just because he lacked focus and common sense in his exhausted state… he _grossly_ underestimated her, and finally Paul was coming to understand that.

"I have a _plan_ for her," Paul grimly assured; from what he learned of his landslide loss, he was not about to go into this rematch without a strategy again.

"Reggie…!"

Caught up in the moment, Ash had forgotten to put on his jacket before rushing out into the below-freezing temperatures. Just in the mere attempt to keep up with their friend, Brock and Dawn also forgot to suit up. They quickly made themselves known to the pair of brothers, both of whom were secretly relieved to have a break in their tenuous conversation, even if it was the likes of Ash and his friends.

"Would you look at that!" Reggie exclaimed, pleasantly surprised. "Wow, it's been a long time."

"Yeah, it really has," Dawn agreed, all smiles as she usually was. She was even more cheerful getting to reunite with a good friend of hers, though her mere presence reminded both Paul and Reggie of Conway and his notable absence. Paul in particular imagined Conway completely losing his mind in a situation like this, highlighting the traits of Conway that Paul had always found pathetic.

"It's great to see ya," Ash greeted before asking the question that was on _everyone's_ minds. "What're you doing here?"

How to put it succinctly… that was the true question. But Reggie had enough time to mull over that and finally had an appropriate answer to give. "I just finished bringing a Pokémon I was watching back to its trainer," he said. That much was true; complicated as things got after that. Still, Reggie would soon enough see firsthand the benefits reaped from his hard labor. But why Ash would be here in this remote location as well… that wasn't too hard for him to figure out. "You challenging the Snowpoint Gym, too?"

Ash was more than happy to brag about his victory once more. "Yeah, I battled Candice yesterday and won the badge!"

"Really? Awesome!" Reggie congratulated, happy to see Ash had made great progress since they last met. Truthfully, Reggie too could see a bit of himself in Ash just like Paul could; though Ash clearly retained more of his innocence through the years than Reggie did. Then again, Ash wasn't tasked with raising a baby brother throughout the majority of his Pokémon journey like Reggie was. However, the breeder did not regret this and never once found caring for Paul a daunting task, nor thought of Paul as someone holding him back or slowing him down.

He looked to his younger sibling with a knowing smile. "Hey, hear that, Paul? That's great, huh?"

"Hmph." Paul obviously hated being reminded of that. Not only of Ash being ahead of him, but defeating the person who wiped him out while barely breaking a sweat.

"He's your rival, isn't he?" Reggie playfully teased. "So you'd better keep up with him."

The discontented look on Paul's face contorted into one of pure stress and aggravation; he hated it when Reggie rubbed in things like this. So many negative thoughts were going through his mind at once and he hated this entire situation. Never before had he wished so much to be in the Snowpoint Gym again.

Reggie just smiled at him. "Okay if I come watch your battle?" After all, it was an unexpected treat for him to run into Paul when they hadn't seen each other in person for weeks. He was very talented in hiding it, but Reggie felt a particular aura of discomfort around Paul; something must have happened… something Paul was withholding from him. However, this wasn't the time to crack the tough nut that was his brother. Reggie figured there was no harm in getting to enjoy watching him in a Gym Battle for once.

"Whatever you want," Paul replied in a soft, neutral tone. Given his expressions just seconds ago, there was no doubt that he was repressing something fierce, if only because he was surrounded by several people at the moment and all of them were roadblocks in his path towards his seventh badge.

Zoey was perplexed at best as she carefully observed the interaction between the brothers. It was then that she came to the conclusion, "Man, that guy Paul may be the total opposite of Ash, but he's absolutely nothing like his brother, either."

"Ah, for sure," Dawn agreed, slightly shaken by the scene herself… if only because it was her first time seeing Paul and Reggie interact in person. However, the same was true for Ash and Brock as well. Naturally, Ash was for the most part oblivious to the negative nuances surrounding this conversation. Brock, on the other hand, was ever-silent, ever-observing. He had caught the details that went over the heads of everyone else, but reserved himself from making a remark of any kind.

However, concentration for all parties was soon broken as they felt the area rumble abruptly around them. Piplup was the first to notice, but seconds later everyone was shaken by the disturbance. It wasn't obvious what the cause of it was at first.

"What's that?" Ash cried out just before a shadow enveloped them all. It wasn't blinding darkness, but it was definitely a stark contrast to the pleasant sun they were all graced with. Everyone looked up to see what was obscuring the sun, but no one could make out what it was exactly until it passed over them, allowing the sun to shine down over them once more.

A large square-shaped shadow was on the move, and at last the group could finally get a clear look at what caused such a commotion.

Dawn, however, couldn't even hazard a guess as to what it was. "What's that?"

Pulling both hands together into fists, Ash knowingly grinned at the sight. No other aircraft had that kind of design; Ash knew this model by heart as often as he visited it in the not-so-distant past. "It's the Battle Pyramid!"

Hearing this prompted both Paul and Reggie to gape at Ash with sheer and utter surprise. Of course, they immediately identified the aircraft as well, but kept their mouths shut about it and didn't expect anyone else to be familiar with it.

"Wow, you guys know about that thing?" Reggie asked, clearly impressed, and at the same time aghast that he underestimated how cultured Ash's group was.

"Yeah," Ash affirmed proudly. "I finally beat it, but it took me a bunch of tries."

And just like that, Paul's entire world came crashing down once again. It had a habit of doing that quite a bit lately given what's happened recently, but _this?_ The very idea was ludicrous; this was no small feat to brag about. He couldn't be lying; that wasn't how Ash operated. The Kanto native simply wasn't cunning enough to pull off a convincing lie, but he sounded purely honest when he outright told Reggie and Paul that he had already defeated their father… the man _they_ had yet to defeat. Not only that, but Ash defeated the man _very few_ people have ever defeated in the past.

It was not just Paul's father Ash defeated; it was one of the world's highest-ranked trainers. A previous Elite Four hopeful, and by this point there was no doubt that he would be a shoe-in for an Elite Four position if one were ever to open up… but years ago, Brandon had accepted his destiny and remained a Frontier Brain as the pillar. He was the glue that held it all together and was the standard set for all trainers to strive for; not to mention fellow Frontier Brains.

The revelations were coming to Paul all at once, and for the first time he was truly at a loss for words other than, "What…? You beat it?"

His lack of composure definitely got Reggie's attention, but the elder brother couldn't in all good conscience blame him. He too felt a great shock to his system as he realized he had trained with, battled, and taught Brave Bird to a young man who had already surpassed him in many ways. This begged the question of why Ash himself was not in Kanto as a Frontier Brain with his own facility, but simultaneously the brothers' minds raced back to the fact that _Brandon just arrived in Snowpoint City._ In little over a month's time, the family would be reunited in person once again, but for once, Reggie wasn't exactly feeling joyous over this occasion… especially after learning about Ash.

"Hey, I'm not saying it was easy," Ash assured. "But now that I'm thinkin' about it, why would Brandon be here?"

"While he's in the area, we might as well find out," Brock suggested. "You know he wouldn't forget somebody like you, Ash. This is a great opportunity to catch up with him."

Ash nodded vigorously. "You're right, Brock! He has to remember us! C'mon, let's go give him a call!"

Within seconds, Ash had already raced all the way to the front door of Snowpoint City's Pokémon Center. Brock trailed not far behind with Dawn and Zoey bringing up the rear.

"What are they going on about?" Zoey whispered to Dawn. "They seriously know a guy who owns a flying pyramid?"

"I'm just as confused as you are," Dawn sympathized. "I haven't got a clue what anyone's talking about… but I guess we'll find out soon, won't we?"

Zoey couldn't help but feel apprehensive about this. "Well, if Ash and Brock like this person, I guess they can't be too bad…" No worse than Paul, certainly.

Paul and Reggie watched the others dash inside as they mulled over how to handle this… not to mention the whole "Ash beat Brandon" thing was still sinking in for both of them.

"Did you know about this…?" Reggie quietly asked his brother. Said brother turned to face Reggie with a rather sudden outburst.

"Of course I didn't!" Paul barked out. "Did you?"

Reggie shook his head. "No, but he did say he was going to be in the area the last time we were together…"

"That was a _month_ ago, Reggie," Paul countered. "You really think he's been up here this whole time and _still_ hasn't found Regigigas yet?"

"He would have let us know if he found it," Reggie reminded him. "The fact that he's actually in the city now must mean he's desperate for clues…"

Paul nodded. "Makes sense. I think we'd better go pay the old man a visit with them, then."

"I can give us all a ride," Reggie offered. "Good thing I've got a van for such an occasion. Still, I'm sure Ash will be in for quite a shock when he finds out that Brandon is our-"

Just then, Paul gave his brother a harsh nudge. "Not a _word_ out of you, Reggie," he warned. "I've got a plan, but I'm going to need your cooperation, and that involves making sure the others don't pick up on that bit of information."

Was Paul ever thankful he took his medication when he was supposed to for once; he was sure he wouldn't be able to handle the stress of Ash, his father, and all of the revelations in between in addition to the possibility that he could vomit blood at any time; the latter at least was controlled by that medicine with ease.

"If you don't want Ash to know, I'll respect that," Reggie promised. "But what do we need a plan for…?"

Paul just let out an aggravated sigh and shook his head. "You're so naïve… we _always_ need a plan for the old man, even if it's just to talk to him. If you think he's going to be emotional like he was at home, think again. He only acted like that then because he thought you were going to die, remember?"

Way back when Reggie had been struck by lightning… while he made a fantastic recovery, it was true that Reggie almost died that day. Even still, there were lingering side-effects to worry about, as their bouts were completely random. Reggie grew somber after listening to Paul… he knew his wise little brother spoke the truth. Now that Reggie was fine and neither he nor Brandon knew about what ailed Paul, it would be back to business as usual with the three.

"Right back to not being his sons…" Reggie quietly stated. "I guess you're right; there's not much use in telling everybody that he's our dad. Brandon will just flat-out deny it because we haven't beaten him."

"We'll reflect on this later," Paul instructed; his harsh tone and unwillingness to let his emotions get the better of him for long was very reminiscent of his own hated father's nature. "Listen to me very carefully, because I don't have time to repeat myself."

The Battle Pyramid was very effective in drawing the attention of nearly every resident of Snowpoint City… as well as tourists and honored guests.

Even guests without any sort of honor whatsoever, such as the mere trio of persons representing Team Rocket in their attempt to create a presence in the Sinnoh region, watched in awe as the Battle Pyramid soared right over their heads and into the unknown.

A period of awkward silence later, self-proclaimed leader Jessie spoke up. "Tell me that's not the Battle Pyramid…"

Of course they knew of this facility; they went where Ash went, no matter the time or the place.

"I'd be lying if I did," James quietly stated, still staring at the sky with mild disbelief. "Though from Kanto it's quite a haul."

"Even flyboys need a change of scene!" was Meowth's explanation. "Though most guys would vacation in beaches, ya'd think."

James simply couldn't take his eyes off the sky. "As I recall, that man is not the type who fits in the "most guys" category…"

Jessie's Wobbuffet popped out just in to give its usual "Wooooh-buffet!" reaction.

"No way," Jessie muttered, still unable to suspend her disbelief of what she just saw.

Further out at the Snowpoint Gym, the rumbling and the loud noise disrupted Candice's training. She dashed outside as quickly as she could to see what was going on and came out just in time to see the mighty Battle Pyramid as it flew past her Gym and beyond.

"Oh, wow…" she quietly marveled. This was quite the enchanting sight for her. Even though Candice knew she would be having a Gym Battle soon, this phenomenon intrigued her far too much to go by ignored. The young Gym Leader kept up with the happenings across every region; this allowed her to quite easily identify this highly unusual aircraft. There was no doubt in her mind.

This was also a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and Candice wasn't about to pass up on it. She promptly dug a Pokéball out of her pocket and tossed it out. "Come on, Dodrio!" the Gym Leader shouted, unleashing her method of transportation. "Let's go check this out! Follow that pyramid!"

All this time, Brandon had no idea how conspicuous his entrance into Snowpoint City was. His mind was firmly fixed on Regigigas and figuring out a way to get Maria to concede to his desires.

"Maria's on her way right now," Samuel informed Brandon, now in charge of handling the new systems installed into the Battle Pyramid while Brandon piloted his facility. "And we should be reaching the Valhalla Plains within a couple of minutes."

"Good. Very good," Brandon commended. "We'll likely get there before her, then. Punctuality will make a good first impression."

Samuel gulped at that. "It's now or never, isn't it…" Just then, the interface lit up and the plasma screen went from black to static, making a ringing noise. "Huh? Another call…?"

"Her again?" Brandon inquired. "She'd better not be cancelling…"

"The transmission's from the Snowpoint City Pokémon Center," Samuel reported. "It isn't Maria."

Brandon found this very odd; he wasn't expecting a call from anyone else, much less in Snowpoint City. "Most likely a misdialed number," the Pyramid King assumed. "But go ahead and patch it through."

His assistant heeded the order and allowed the call to go through. The static on the display screen abruptly disappeared, displaying a crisp, clear picture of Ash and his friends, who were all smiles upon seeing the visage of an old, familiar friend.

"Hey, Brandon! Long time no see!" Ash greeted, full of energy as ever. "It's Ash from Pallet Town!"

Not that Ash even needed to remind Brandon who he was; people who could manage to defeat the Pyramid King were few and far in between. Additionally, Brandon had just seen Ash's visage on a television a little over a week ago in the PokéRinger competition, winning the whole thing. Brandon smiled up at his young challenger. "I'll be. So how are ya, kid?"

"Great!" Ash replied. That enthusiasm of his would never die out. "Me and my friends were in the area and we saw your Battle Pyramid fly right over us, so how about we meet up soon if you're not too busy?"

While Samuel looked concerned, Brandon's smile never faded as he silently gave the okay in the form of a nod. "I would enjoy hearing what you've been doing since you conquered the Battle Frontier," he said. "We'll be making landfall in the Valhalla Plains just outside of the city."

"Not that far, huh?" Ash assumed. "Count us in! We'll be over there as soon as we can."

"I'll look forward to seeing you," Brandon assured. "Until then, kid."

He ended the call, now in much brighter spirits than before. "To think that little upstart is here as well… this will prove to be a very interesting day, indeed."

"Brandon, this _is_ a business trip," Samuel reminded nervously. "Not for pleasure…" It was strange that _he_ was the one saying this rather than his boss, come to think of it.

"I assure you, he won't slow us down," Brandon promised. "Remember, Sam: I have not set foot in my home region for seven years. My priorities are perfectly fine, but I won't pass up any opportunity to enjoy my time here while I still can. There's no telling when I'll be in Sinnoh again after today…" Brandon's voice grew quieter, taking on a more serious tone. "After what I've done, let alone the usual demands of this job, I may be old and gray before I can enjoy Sinnoh and the people in it again."

Samuel looked Brandon in the eye; something he rarely dared to do. "Having any regrets?"

"My regrets… are ones beyond my control," Brandon admitted. "I wish I could do things differently, but had I done what I wanted, the safety and financial security of my family would be compromised. I honestly can't say whether or not the Battle Frontier would have fared better without me, but that's another thing I didn't want to risk, even after having the chance to move on up…"

"You've definitely made a lot of sacrifices over the years," Samuel noted. "And I believe the rest of the committee sees that. I guess that's one reason why they've been lenient on you so far."

"But I don't need their pity," Brandon stiffly claimed. "All I need now is for this mission to go off without a hitch…"

All of a sudden, there was another call coming in. "Huh; weird," Samuel remarked, raising an eyebrow at the interface. "Another call from the same Pokémon Center…"

Brandon nodded immediately. "Perhaps they forgot to tell me something. Go ahead and accept it."

* * *

It was not Ash making the call, but rather someone else who was very familiar with Brandon. While Ash, Brock, Dawn, and Zoey were busy with the brief call to Brandon, Paul and Reggie very quietly eavesdropped; Paul in particular looked focused on getting _something_ accomplished. Reggie had already planned on giving everyone a ride to Brandon's location, to which the others graciously accepted. As they all raced towards Reggie's van outside, Paul snagged the elder brother by the arm just as he was about to follow.

Paul seemed to have an agenda of his own as he ordered Reggie to stall for time by offering to load up everyone's belongings into the van's trunk (seeing as Ash, Brock, and Dawn were going to leave Snowpoint City today, anyway). While the others would be inside the van and waiting (Reggie insisting on not being helped), Paul was left on his own to call Brandon himself. If this was the way the remains of Paul's family had to reunite, then Paul decided he would have to lay some ground rules here and now.

When Brandon's visage appeared on the screen once more, Paul made sure to put on his best frown.

"Ah. I had a feeling you were lurking around somewhere in this city," Brandon smugly remarked. "Would it be off of me to assume you've been interacting with some friends of yours, kid?"

"Those _people_ are not my friends," Paul spat. "Now drop the casual act. I called you for a reason."

It really was jarring for Brandon to be ordered around by his own son… but he had come to expect no less from Paul; this was how Brandon raised him to be in his early days. "Very well. State your reason."

"Expect to see me with the group when you land," Paul forewarned. "They already know about Reggie battling you in the past, so that much is unavoidable. Regardless, these people don't need to know any more than that, so when you see me, we're to be on no more than a _strictly_ professional level." There was no clearer way Paul could put it, honestly. "So keep that in mind: familiar, but _professional._ Are we understood?"

How many children would talk to their own father like this? Though Paul barely considered Brandon a real father to begin with, he couldn't ignore the genetic evidence. That bore no relevance to how much respect (or lack thereof) Paul had for the man, either way. The Pyramid King might have been offended if he wasn't so absorbed in how Paul was gradually becoming more and more like himself as the days went by.

"So it's as I thought," Brandon presumed. "You know that Ash Ketchum boy quite well. Are you actually _ashamed_ of your family roots?"

"It has nothing to do with that," Paul stiffly assured his father. "I'd just prefer that idiot doesn't stick his nose where it doesn't belong, and he's had a terrible habit of doing that every time we crossed paths in Sinnoh." The only thing Paul had to be ashamed about now in regards to his father was the fact that Ash defeated him already… quite a while ago, it seemed, while Paul himself continued to struggle in pulling off that feat.

Surprisingly, Brandon knew what it was like to be plagued by someone who seemed to carry only a small fraction of his own intelligence, and the Frontier Brain too was easily irritated by people who were ignorant and overly curious. He could see that in Ash the very day the two met in Kanto, so there was at least a clear understanding between Brandon and Paul on that subject.

"If that's what you wish, kid, consider it granted," Brandon assured. "Just don't ever say your old man never did you any favors from now on."

Paul rolled his eyes at that. "I'll see you soon," he muttered before ending the call. Goodbyes with his family were always awkward if not dealt with immediately. Besides that, he didn't want to waste too much time explaining things to Brandon, because there was one more important thing he had to accomplish before getting on the road.

"Paul, what's the holdup?" Reggie quietly asked, suddenly popping in. "Just how long do I have to stall the others? When they're excited like this…"

"Stop whining," Paul commanded in a sharp tone, already in the midst of dialing another number. "I just need a few more minutes. Tell them I'm in the bathroom, tell them a story… _I don't care._ Just don't go anywhere until I finish up here. Now get back out there and keep distracting them."

Reggie sighed, consenting to the order, scratching his head on the way out. "You're obviously up to something, but what…"

Just as he stepped outside the Pokémon Center, Paul's next call was finally answered: a familiar young lady with short pink hair appeared on the screen, less than enthused to see who was calling her. "Oh… Paul. Nice to hear from you again…" Even she couldn't force out a drop of false sincerity from her tone, but it wasn't like Paul cared about civility to begin with.

"Maylene, if you're busy with anything, drop it now," Paul instructed, remaining ever-so-callous. "I need to make some… exchanges, and I need them processed _now._"

The Gym Leader heaved out a sigh as she prepared herself with an abundance of Pokéballs. "Sounds like you're in a hurry, so I won't bother asking why. Which ones are you trading in, and what for?"

She hated when Paul was like this, especially during a time when Maylene felt there was so much to tell him… Conway's "death", Reggie being absent… but she could tell just by looking into Paul's eyes that she would only get yelled at if she strayed from the main subject even a little.

"For the moment, I'm giving you Gliscor, Honchkrow… and Torterra," Paul replied, clearly hesitating before deciding on the last Pokémon he would send back to Reggie's for the time being. All three of these Pokémon were scheduled to battle against Candice today, after all. However, the sudden rush of stress and anxiety coming with Brandon's arrival came with the expense of some logic on Paul's end. Still, he put great thought into who would be replacing these three Pokémon for a very important and specific purpose.

"In exchange, I'm going to need…"

* * *

"Ash, did you say Battle _Pyramid?_" Dawn asked her traveling companion inside the van, which was finally driving off to its destination: the very subject Dawn initiated. The rookie Coordinator was still completely in the dark and decided this was a good time as any to clear things up. What she saw in the sky was certainly a pyramid; there was no doubt about that. The very idea of a flying pyramid, however, was still a bit much for Dawn to comprehend in spite of the wacky adventures she had since leaving Twinleaf Town.

"Yeah, it was the final facility Ash challenged back in the Kanto Battle Frontier days," Brock explained for Ash… which was of course for the best; exposition was not one of Ash's strong points.

Dawn nodded and smiled, pretending she understood this perfectly. "The Battle Frontier! That's… uh…" Just like that, her cluelessness was made obvious to everyone again, though at least Zoey was in the same boat, more or less.

"It's a group of facilities, somewhat like a Gym, but more intense where you challenge and battle against an amazing group of powerful trainers called Frontier Brains," Brock told her, not the type who would mock Dawn for being this ignorant. Again, Dawn was still in her first year of training and mostly absorbed with Contests and creating appeals; her knowledge of what an average trainer could do, much less special challenges reserved for those with shining potential, was limited. "Brandon is the most powerful Frontier Brain," Brock continued. "And everyone calls him the Pyramid King."

Up in front, Paul quietly listened to the conversation going on behind him, but visually showed no signs of interest in what the others were saying; he didn't want to look too desperate to learn about how Ash defeated his father to make up for that unexpected and uncontrolled outburst earlier. If there was one thing Paul could bring himself to respect his father for, it was his strength. Even he couldn't deny that Brandon was one of the best trainers this world had to offer, and admittedly Paul was intrigued about how Brandon achieved this.

Brock paused for a moment, remembering something important that he learned several months ago that was quite relevant to this conversation. It was a question he always meant to ask, but got distracted and thus never got around to it. "Reggie, didn't you challenge him, too? I remember seeing the Frontier Symbols on display in your house."

This took Paul back as well; not quite as far, but back to just before all of his troubles began. Brock confronted Paul with this very same observation. While Brock was not nearly as irritating as Ash and Dawn were, the breeder had his own special way of getting under Paul's skin… his skills of observation could prove to be more invasive than Ash's curiosity any day.

Reggie, however, took this all in stride. After all, despite his struggles to rectify the unfinished business he left behind four years ago, the breeder (until recently) was fine with simply moving on with his loss and his decision to retire as a trainer. It was almost as if Reggie were browbeaten into this business again by his family. "Yeah, but I never got the Brave Symbol, which is proof of winning at the Battle Pyramid," he explained, sounding completely at ease with his shortcomings.

"Hmph." It wasn't easy, but Paul was at least very quiet and inconspicuous about his discontent with Reggie's attitude about the incident. Brandon too was not happy when Reggie never tried to challenge him to a rematch; it was a decision that broke both Brandon and Paul's hearts. While Brandon was much better at hiding this, the young Paul felt utterly betrayed. The unpleasant memories of four years ago smothered Paul's mind and concentration like an intangible tsunami of uncontrollable elements: sadness, disappointment, hopelessness, shock, uncertainty…

Even the medication wasn't enough to keep Paul even and painless. He was going to have to double up on it just to get through the rest of the day and it was hardly even noon yet.

It didn't matter how well Paul covered it up, though. Brock was observing him carefully as well as Reggie; more so than ever before. Paul's sudden emotional reaction in regards to Reggie not having a Brave Symbol back when he crossed paths with Ash near Hearthome City ages ago was a very obvious sign to Brock… that Brandon indeed was a strong influence on how and why Paul was the way he was.

"That's right; Brock told me," Ash recalled, also curious about this subject when he learned about it some time ago, though his line of thought didn't go nearly as deep as Brock's. "So why did you stop battlin'?"

Reggie's cheerful, casual demeanor faded a bit just then. He knew he'd be faced with this question someday, from somebody other than his relatives…

"Because I learned one thing," Reggie said in a low voice; his tone serious and a complete contrast from how he normally spoke. "That I have a _lot_ more to learn."

The answer was… very, very vague and barely addressed the question at all. Even Paul was surprised by how Reggie seemed to change the minute that question was asked, considering he was perfectly casual and feigning cheerfulness just like he always did. He didn't _seem_ to be struggling with maintaining this façade…

"About what?" Dawn asked innocently; if nothing else, she felt she might be able to relate to Reggie when it came to having more to learn. It was only to be expected with her: a first-year Coordinator who was anticipating her debut into a Grand Festival once she could gain just one more ribbon. "I mean… Brock said you had enough badges to get into at least four League Conferences and you were one step away from beating the Battle Frontier. For all the time it took to earn that, you must have learned a lot already…"

Reggie nodded, but Paul noticed he still looked rather grim… mildly so, but still enough of a stark contrast from Reggie's usual behavior. "The truth is, Dawn, you'll always learn something new no matter how far you make it," he told her. "That applies to all of you: even if you become Top Coordinator, the best Pokémon Breeder in your region, or even a Pokémon Master… the fact of the matter is that no one really ever masters _everything._"

"So what you're saying is… we should never think our journey is over even when we reach our goals," Zoey assumed. "Is that right?"

"Exactly," Reggie affirmed. "There are a lot of trainers out there with the same goals in mind as you guys. That's why it's important that you never lose your focus and don't let the achievement of your goal become your greatest weakness."

"But Reggie," Ash calmly interjected. "If you never got the Brave Symbol, then you didn't reach your goal, right?"

Brock noticed Paul tense up right after that inquiry was made. Clearly, this was some sort of soft spot for Paul even though it seemed to not have much to do with him.

"That's right," Reggie said; his head feeling heavy all of a sudden. He finally thought to cover up his fatigued sorrow with a smile, but it was far too late to fool anyone intuitive enough to notice something strange was going on. "My goal was a lot like yours back in the day, Ash. I wanted to be a Pokémon Master… the Champion of the Sinnoh Region, like what Cynthia is now."

Like Cynthia… merely namedropping the woman who single-handedly flattened Paul's team in a battle so long ago made it very difficult for Paul to keep his cool at this point. Interestingly, Paul never hated or even remotely disliked Cynthia. He disagreed with her, sure… but women who were mature, powerful, and atypical of their gender's nature stood out to Paul in a good way. In a way, one might say he even admired her in spite of all their conflicting views.

"Feel free to not answer if we're overstepping our boundaries," Brock calmly offered. "But what lesson did you really learn from your battle with Brandon that convinced you to stop battling from that day forward?"

"That lesson…" Reggie's voice had a hollow sound to it as he tried to put his complex feelings into words… words these naïve kids (Paul notwithstanding) could understand.

Then, all of a sudden, he smiled. It was just as false as the happy act Reggie was putting on, but nonetheless helped put most of the others at ease. "When I was defeated by Brandon, his lesson was the most important one I ever learned. He made me aware… of my own immaturity."

No one felt compelled to ask Reggie any further questions on the matter, although many more questions circled around their heads after hearing their driver's response. Zoey was aghast at how _complicated _Paul's family situation seemed to be, and she still didn't know the other half it; then again, neither did her friends.

Still yet, Brock was officially suspicious now. Going by Reggie's oddly serious behavior and Paul's intense reaction when he found out that Ash conquered the Battle Pyramid… the pieces of this puzzle were slowly but surely coming together for him.

The air was tense inside the van as the rest of the road trip to the Battle Pyramid was dead silent. Thankfully, their destination was just up ahead.

* * *

Brandon was quick to step outside as soon as the Battle Pyramid made landfall at the Valhalla Plains. The area beyond the city was utterly desolate compared to civilization not far away, though at least it seemed this area was often walked through by trainers; otherwise it likely would have been just as treacherous and snow-filled as the previous routes to the city. Instead, the snow was only lightly scattered about, leaving only dirt uncovered. Truly, the plains were more like a frozen desert, though at least there were several trees in the area. Most likely it was just a cleared section of what was once a forest.

The Pyramid King was pleased to see a van coming right towards his facility. Since Maria never specified what vehicle she would be driving to meet up with him in, Brandon had no way of knowing if this was Maria he was about to encounter or his son and the other kids. Though if it were the children, Brandon couldn't help but wonder who would be driving them. Brock never struck him as someone with the ability to drive, and Paul completely neglected to tell Brandon that Reggie was in the city at the same time as everyone else.

However, that mystery was soon put to rest as he saw kids pouring out from both sides of the van after it parked. Ash and Brock were to be expected, as was Paul, but Dawn and Zoey were completely new faces to him. Brandon briefly wondered why Ash's previous traveling companions, May and Max, weren't with them, as it was after his and Ash's last battle when May decided she would split ways with Ash; Max having no choice but to follow suit.

That small bit of curiosity was pushed far back as Brandon witnessed Reggie stepping out of the van; he only allowed himself to be visibly shocked by this for a moment (and at the time he was too far away for anyone to catch this). Brandon figured this was part of why Paul was so serious about keeping their family ties under wraps; the surprise of seeing both his sons here would naturally make Brandon start with the questioning and blow the cover Paul tried to maintain. After all, he expected Paul would still be up here as he was itching for a battle, though he figured Paul would wait for the catching-up with Ash to finish and the crowd to clear out before following up on his promise. If Paul didn't want his peers knowing about their relation, Brandon assumed this meant he didn't want them watching their battle, either.

But Reggie… why in the world he would be all the way up here, Brandon had no idea. Nonetheless, he needed to make the best of his time before Maria arrived, as it just then occurred to him that he might offend Maria if he made her wait too long before getting to the business part of the reason why Brandon came all the way here to begin with.

He couldn't help but notice Paul was lagging behind a bit while everyone else approached him. He was staring straight up at the Battle Pyramid, reflecting on the promise he made and how soon it would all come to a head. It wasn't much of a surprise to the Frontier Brain; he figured his youngest son had a _lot_ on his mind right now.

"What a nice surprise," Brandon remarked as everyone came within a reasonable distance, Paul excluded.

Reggie nodded and smiled, though his lack of surprise to initially see his father here made it clear that he had indeed been in the city and probably was with the others the time the first call was made. This would give him plenty of time to concentrate and put on an act that complied with Paul's wishes. "It's been much too long, Brandon."

The fact that Reggie referred to his father by name rather than the much more affectionate "Dad" confirmed all of these suspicions.

"Great to see so many familiar faces," Brandon said, enjoying the nostalgic feeling of being met up by many symbols of his past, both distant and recent. During this, Paul finally drew himself away from the van… he simply couldn't help himself by gazing at the Battle Pyramid, being just as big (if not bigger) than he remembered it being when he was last there four years ago. Same could be said of Reggie, though he was presently more concerned with keeping up a convincing act. As Paul quietly rejoined the group, Brandon couldn't help but smirk as he made a subtle jab at him. "If I remember, you're Reggie's younger brother, right?"

Under any other circumstance, Paul honestly would have tried to strike his father. It bothered him _way too much_ how that statement, obvious as it was that Brandon was just playing his role as Paul requested, sounded so natural coming out of him… as if Brandon might have said that even when there wasn't anything to hide. What the Pyramid King had just said had Paul unable to bear the wait any longer, even if they had only been together for all of a couple of minutes so far.

"So you _do_ remember me," Paul replied; his tone especially harsh. He wasn't going to be able to handle small talk for very long, and since that much was obvious to him, Paul decided to cut straight to the chase. "I'd like to challenge you to a Pokémon Battle… right here and now."

"Huh…?" Brandon couldn't believe the official challenge was coming this soon. Everyone immediately gaped at Paul for the very sudden quest, especially since he asked in such an impatient and demanding way. Even Brandon wasn't sure how what he said would spark Paul's competitive side so quickly in spite of the company Paul was desperate to hide their relation from. Reggie especially was taken aback by this; he remembered Paul and Brandon's promise to battle way back in Veilstone City, but for the life of him, he couldn't figure out why his little brother insisted on it before even getting the chance to catch up with their estranged father.

Then again… it was obvious at least to Brandon that Paul never had any interest in "catching up" – seeing Brandon for a couple of hours in Veilstone City was more than enough for him, apparently.

"Battle…?" Ash wondered out loud, being the only one vocal enough to react this way. For all the times he'd encountered Paul, whether it was battling him, being forced to work with him, or even just talking with him… _never_ had he seen his rival look this focused before. It didn't occur to him just how deeply it hit Paul when he told him about one of his greatest victories to date.

However, just before anyone else could react to this, a distinct pattering noise was heard in the distance, getting the attention of most of the group. All were surprised to see an approaching Dodrio ridden by Candice quickly coming up and stopping not far away from the others. Rather than addressing the group, Candice immediately trotted over to where she could get a good look at the Battle Pyramid, admiring the structure for all its glory and prestige.

"Incredible! It's the _real_ Battle Pyramid!" Candice marveled; her eyes sparkling with delight.

"Miss Senior?" Zoey called out, definitely not expecting her mentor to show up at a time like this. She wished she could be surprised to see Candice being so distracted by something as amazing as this that she would forget to address the others first like normal people would.

"Ah!" the Gym Leader squealed. Needless to say she was glad she abandoned her post at Snowpoint Gym to check this out. "And it's… so huge!"

Brandon had no idea who this was, but he figured it was best to gently bring her back down to earth. "Sorry to make such a fuss," he apologized. "But I'm Brandon, the Pyramid King of the Battle Frontier."

Candice bowed respectfully. "I'm honored to meet you! I'm Candice, the Snowpoint City Gym Leader." To say she was honored was an understatement, but like certain others (though for different reasons), Brandon's mere presence in this remote location was a lot to take in. Still, there was more yet to come as Candice heard another noise steadily growing louder as it neared the landing site of the Battle Pyramid. "Huh…?" It appeared to be a jeep.

The rest of the crowd took notice to this as soon as Candice acknowledged it, though Brandon smiled knowingly. Though he just received several surprise visitors all at once, he figured this finally must be who he came here for, and proved to be correct when a certain modest maiden stepped out of the jeep after it was parked. She was a little surprised to see a crowd surrounding Brandon, but didn't show this through any facial expression.

"Oh, it's you, Maria," Brandon called out, pleased to see the only person who could help him find what he was looking for.

Like Candice, Maria was humbled in the presence of Kanto's finest Frontier Brain and gave him a respectful bow. "We've been waiting for you, Pyramid King."

The others looked utterly dumbfounded, not recognizing this woman at all or what her purpose for appearing was. Noticing this, Brandon was more than happy to explain. "I'd like to introduce you all. Everyone, please say hello to temple maiden Maria."

"It's an honor," she greeted, bowing again. It seemed to be an automatic gesture for someone like her. However, modest maidens like her were ideal love interests for desperate and love-starved boys like Brock, who cried out at the sight of her and instantly jumped over to Maria's side. She felt a bit beside herself as she watched Brock kneel before her as if he were about to propose a marriage.

"With a beautiful maiden like you, I must make a pilgrimage to the Snowpoint Temple right away…!" That's all Brock could get out before a very familiar and routine sharp burst of pain exploded from his backside. As usual, the culprit was Brock's Croagunk with its expertly-executed Poison Jab, which never failed to paralyze Brock long enough for Croagunk to drag him away from any targeted ladies, such as Maria for today.

There was the usual awkward silence that followed as Croagunk dragged his victim/trainer away, save for a weak whine from Brock. "No fair; I haven't even left yet…" The others just couldn't look away; it was quite the definitive trainwreck. Even Brandon was taken aback by it, though Paul was the only one who looked visibly annoyed at the entire scene. He had just demanded a battle from his father, after all, and he was getting highly irritated with all of these distractions that delayed their fated clash.

Dawn thought back on what Brock had said before getting Poison Jabbed, as well as how Brandon introduced Maria to the group. She looked to her rival for some answers. "Zoey, there's a temple here?"

"Oh yeah," Zoey recalled. "The Snowpoint Temple. It's a bit far from here, but it's an ancient temple with a rich history."

"That sounds awesome!" Dawn remarked; meanwhile it very quickly occurred to Reggie and Paul why Maria was here and why Brandon came to Snowpoint City. Naturally, especially after what the Regigigas book implied, Brandon would be drawn to this place after learning about it. Brandon explained this for those who didn't catch on immediately like his sons.

"You see, my purpose in coming to Sinnoh is to investigate the Snowpoint Temple," he said… only confirming what the brothers believed to be the case. Naturally, someone as proud as Brandon wouldn't admit to this lot that he had been in Sinnoh for well over a month and only found out about the temple itself recently… it was also convenient and expected of Brandon to not say precisely what he was investigating.

"Of course," a quickly-recovering Brock realized, thinking back on his encounters with Brandon back in Kanto… particularly the first time. "You do research on many ancient civilizations, right?"

"Correct," Brandon confirmed. He was pleased to see that he was well-remembered by his Kanto-native acquaintances.

"But I never imagined you were going to travel here in your amazing Battle Pyramid," Maria brought up. Though it was true she was contacted by the Battle Pyramid's communication systems, Brandon never once said anything about actually bringing his massive vessel straight to his destination.

The fact that Brandon had attracted so much attention by doing so actually had him mildly flustered. "It appears we've caused a bit of a scene," he admitted. He then realized his faithful assistant was right by him, only now noticing his presence. Then again, a lot had happened in the short amount of time that passed since making landfall. But he decided the time for small-talk was over; now was the time to get down to business, and already Brandon had everything planned out in his head. "Now, Sam?"

Samuel was startled briefly, suddenly being addressed after all this time. "Sir?"

"Please go on ahead with Maria to the temple," Brandon requested, surprising both his assistant and his designated host for this investigation.

It just begged the obvious question. "Huh…? What about you?" Samuel thought Brandon understood that this was strictly a business trip…

"Take a look," Brandon urged, gesturing to Paul. Exasperation at Brock's antics aside, the fierce and focused look on his face told Brandon what was more important to do right now. "Look into his eyes…"

The eyes that took after Brandon's own, no less.

"How can I refuse this battle the young man requests?" Brandon rhetorically asked his assistant. "I'll catch up with you soon."

He made sure to sound very self-assured about that much, knowing Samuel was having doubts about wherein his boss' priorities lied.

"Thank you sir," Maria said with a bow, understanding the situation perfectly. She nodded for Samuel to follow her to the jeep, having a feeling she wouldn't be waiting long for the Pyramid King's arrival to her humble abode.

Meanwhile, Reggie looked to Paul, concerned about his motivations for jumping to this battle when Paul was so strict about keeping things between Brandon professional. To engage in their promised grudge match at this time and be forced to hold back on what so much of this battle was based on while Ash and the others were still around… it was confusing for Reggie, for once, to understand the motives driving his little brother.

"But Paul… why now?" he quietly asked, making sure to keep his complicated question simple as best he could.

"Because I have to do what _you_ couldn't," Paul harshly replied, not even batting an eye at his older brother… not with his smug father still right in front of him. "And that's that."

It was more than that; Reggie knew it had to be, and Brandon saw through the lie as well. Normally, Paul _would_ have waited for an opportunity to get rid of the potential peanut gallery before issuing his challenge… but all of that changed the second he learned that Ash defeated Brandon already. This wasn't just doing what Reggie couldn't do; this was to prove that Paul could do anything that _Ash_ could do. The loss from the PokéRinger competition, the revelation that Ash was ahead of him in badge count, the fact that Ash was gradually showing more competence as a trainer… all of that was already worrying Paul, who feared his illness would play a role in Ash surpassing him someday if he kept improving at this rate.

But now Paul's image of Ash completely changed after learning that a kid his age managed to beat his own father, a world-renowned trainer… and still come off as a total amateur fresh off that victory when Ash met Paul in the first place. Now Paul was convinced that Ash had been holding back on him this entire time; that Ash was purposefully not giving it his all to someone who didn't have his credentials. Of course, that simply wasn't Ash's way, but never even in Paul's wildest fantasies did he think that Ash could _ever_ be Frontier Brain material. To learn that he already was… that was the whole basis of issuing the challenge now. He figured if _Ash_ could beat Brandon, so could he… and he knew Ash wouldn't be able to resist watching Paul achieve this.

As if on cue, Ash spoke up. "Hey, Brandon! It would be really great if you'd let us watch your battle."

Just as Paul thought… of course his rival was intent on seeing the outcome.

"Hm…" Brandon personally didn't mind, but since Paul had been behaving oddly all day, he figured it was safest to get the OK from him first. "Young man?" he addressed his son… in that professional way that Paul so wanted, even though just hearing it continued to anger Paul, as this was really no different from how Brandon would talk to him normally.

"I don't care," Paul blurted out, not meaning to put so much emotion into that. Even under his own rules, Paul found it hard to contain that rage of his… rage that could only be contained by a vengeful son for his neglectful and overly-proud father. Still, he _wanted_ Ash to see this. But he had to keep his cool and remain professional himself, lest he be even more of a hypocrite than he had been already.

"Then it's settled," Brandon decided. "I'll see you inside." He turned away from the group, walking back inside his facility. There was some uncertainty among the others whether or not to follow right now, but seeing Paul step forward and proceed inside himself signaled the others to come along.

Paul kept a steady pace, keeping himself well ahead enough of Ash and the others while maintaining a good distance behind Brandon. Ash and company had known Paul long enough to figure when it was useless attempting to converse with him… this situation being definitive of that. Regardless, Reggie quickened his pace to catch up with Paul. He wanted to make sure his little brother was still thinking straight, after all.

"Paul, you're _sure_ this is what you want?" Reggie whispered to him, making sure the others wouldn't be able to overhear.

"All is going according to plan," Paul told him; his tone indicated that he was very certain about what he was doing. "I can handle things from here; stay with the others."

Despite that, Reggie wasn't completely convinced. "You just seem… to be rushing into this, that's all. And you know better than to rush when it comes to battling him…"

"_Everything is under control,_" Paul emphasized; his hands balling into fists as he tried to control his anger. "Just… just _trust_ me for once, alright? Now leave me alone; I don't have a lot of time left."

Reggie just stopped after hearing that, letting Paul go on by himself. Ash and company caught up with Reggie, all very curious of what he seemed so worried about.

"Something wrong, Reggie?" Ash asked him, concerned about what just went down. Even he could tell Paul was behaving quite differently from his usual self today, though he hadn't the faintest clue as to why this was the case.

If this plan of Paul's had any hope of going off without a hitch, Reggie knew he had to make use of every chance to throw these guys off the trail. So he put on his best fake smile to reassure the group. "Nah… you know me; I worry about Paul no matter how old and how experienced he gets. He'll always be my little brother…"

"Wish I knew what that was like," Ash mused. "This stuff just goes right over my head…" What an understatement that was.

"Me too," Dawn agreed, also an only child. "Maybe we'd understand Paul better if we had a sibling like he does."

Perhaps that was what set Brock apart from his friends: he knew _exactly_ what it was like, having nine little brothers and sisters of his own that he looked after for a long time before his parents finally came back and acted like… well, _parents_. Brock actually understood situations like these perfectly well, especially from Reggie's point of view since Brock was the eldest child.

"Speakin' of which, Brock's got a lot of brothers and sisters," Ash recalled in a stunning display of his rarely-used long-term memory skills. "So he probably gets Paul real well." He looked up to his companion. "Isn't that right?"

"Don't overestimate my abilities, Ash," a flustered Brock replied. "It takes a lot more than having one thing in common with somebody to completely understand them." He looked up to Reggie. "If anything, I'd sooner understand Reggie's side of things than Paul's, I imagine."

Reggie didn't like that look Brock was giving him… the look that pierced right through the eyes and straight into the mind. It was a gesture that was directly, if silently telling him that Brock knew there was a complicated mess going on behind the scenes right now. Brock had been suspicious of their connection to Brandon for a while now, but at this point he was certain there were important details Reggie was holding back from them.

"Ahaha, probably," Reggie awkwardly laughed away, feigning innocence well enough to not arouse Ash and Dawn's suspicion, but it couldn't get by Brock's. Nothing could at this point. "Really, if I knew what was going on here, I'd tell you guys," he assured. "My best guess is that Paul is just being opportunistic… after all, just how often would we be seeing Pyramid King Brandon in Sinnoh of all places?"

"Hey, even I abandoned my Gym just to check this out," Candice flippantly admitted, showing no shame in her actions whatsoever, much to Zoey's dismay. "If I were Paul I'd be doing the same thing, I bet. This is definitely something worth delaying our Gym Battle for."

"Well, what're we waiting for?" Ash asked everyone, psyched to see how this battle would play out for the simplest of reasons: the joy of seeing the clash of two power players who have been major influences in Ash's life as a trainer. "I remember the way to the arena from last time. What about you, Reggie? It's been a while for ya…"

Reggie just shook his head and smirked. "I couldn't forget a place like this even if I tried."

"Then I'm officially challengin' ya to a race!" Ash proclaimed, suddenly dashing off down the hall. "Nobody keeps up with me…!"

What a welcome way to excuse himself from this conversation with Brock, Reggie thought. Though it would only be temporary since they would be seated together in the end, he was glad to take any moment of reprieve he could get. Running around like he used to in his younger days was ideal for Reggie to let loose a bit.

"Why not? You're on!" Just like that, Reggie was out of there. What was mildly surprising was that Reggie showed to greatly outclass Ash in speed, actually taking the challenge seriously. Ash was in awe of how quickly Reggie passed him up, but that only made him run harder.

Dawn just smiled the way she did in most awkward moments. "Boys will be boys, I guess…"

"Is it just me, or does something feel off about this whole thing?" Zoey wondered out loud. Apparently Brock wasn't the only one who sensed it, though Zoey was very much in the dark regardless.

"What do you mean by "off", Zozo?" Candice asked, though she was keeping things under wraps herself. At least with Reggie and Brandon's presence, it looked like all potential heat would be off of her and she wouldn't have to worry about slipping any details about Paul she allegedly shouldn't know about.

Brock just sighed quietly. "It's not just you," he assured Zoey. "But for now, let's just watch the battle. Maybe it will clear things up."

Paul noticed Reggie and Ash zip by, though they were practically like bullets to him. He briefly shook his head at this, as it only further displayed the similarities between the two. However, more noteworthy was the fact that Paul seemed to be catching up to Brandon, as he was suddenly well within reach. Paul never altered the rate of his pace after breaking off from his brother, so evidently Brandon slowed to a stop on purpose so Paul would catch up to him.

The Frontier Brain, while briefly distracted with his older son and former challenger zipping right by him without noticing, could tell when Paul was at an ideal, safe distance from him. He wasn't going to wait for Paul to ask what was going on: "Kid… how much time do you need before we go through with this?" he sternly asked. "I have important business to take care of here, so I won't wait all day for you to prepare."

"No more than five minutes," Paul affirmed. They were both equally cold to each other at this point. "But you know you promised we'd battle over a month ago. So quick to ditch me for work again, aren't you?"

"_Work_ is what brought me to Sinnoh in the first place," Brandon reminded him. "And work is what inspired me to grant you and your brother the right to challenge me formally. If I were you, kid, I would learn my place and do so _quickly._"

A statement like that made Paul's blood boil easily. "It's pointless for you to worry about how much of your precious time I'll eat up," he claimed. "I'll make short work of you… so look forward to that."

"I've heard enough talk from you," Brandon informed him. "From now on, we will communicate through battle and only that. I assume you still want to keep this "professional", correct?"

"Of course," Paul replied, looking relieved as they passed by a bathroom in the facility. "You've made your point," he admitted. "I'll be preparing now… see you soon."

Paul stopped and opened the bathroom door. Brandon paused briefly to look behind him; he didn't expect Paul would choose a place like this to "prepare", but then again he wasn't going to question it, either. He simply nodded to his second son before going on his way to the battling arena.

Wasting no time, Paul locked himself in the bathroom and slumped over the sink; talking to his father took more out of him than he thought. Though self-assured for the most part, Paul was still at unease with how this day was playing out. It only got worse when Paul experienced a familiar nasty cough with speckles of red appearing on the counter in its wake. His eyes widened in horror.

"Not now…" he whispered. "No, this can't hold me back _now_. I'm not going to let it…"

There was no other choice but to double up on his medication to keep his illness at bay; at least that was a legit way to use it in days where his symptoms were more prevalent than on others. He choked it down quickly, glaring at his own reflection in the mirror as he cleaned up. "If that fool can beat the old man, so can I… and if I can beat the old man, then I'll know I can't give up yet. Just because of… what I am…" Damaged goods; tainted with inherent weakness… that's what Paul felt in the wake of the discovery of his disease juxtaposed with the revelations about his own father, as well as Ash.

He feared this illness would allow Ash to surpass him in battle one day… Paul was not going to let that happen, and he intended to prove it by defeating Brandon with ease in spite of his crippling ailments. Before leaving, Paul looked down at his set of miniature Pokéballs – the team he arranged specifically to deal with Brandon this time.

"I chose you all for a reason," he reminded his team. "I know what I'm doing… if you fail to play your role in the old man's overdue defeat, that's _your_ problem; not mine."

Obviously his Pokémon could not reply back, but this didn't need to be said nor written out by their trainer; they knew him well enough to know what he expected and most of them were aware of just who Brandon was to Paul.

Not a father, no… an _adversary.

* * *

_

As the time elapsed, it was finally time for the battle to begin. Brandon and Paul were in position on the battlefield while Ash, Dawn, Reggie, Candice, and Zoey were seated in the stands. Brock was making his way down to the platform Samuel usually stood upon as he oversaw Brandon's various matches. With Samuel absent now, Brock took it upon himself to take his place.

"Brandon, I could referee…!" he called out. Brock wanted to see up close and personally what all of this meant, but before Brandon could approve, Paul cut in.

"Why? There's no need!" Paul yelled out suddenly, surprising Brandon and not even giving him time to ask what he was up to. He had already predetermined it a while ago: "It's a full six-on-six battle; Pokémon exchanges allowed. The battle will be over when one side's Pokémon are unable to continue."

Shocking as it was to be cut off, Brandon liked seeing this spark in Paul. These rules were rather interesting as Paul was only making it harder for himself by allowing Brandon to substitute as well. Not even Ash had to deal with that, nor did Reggie. Paul was determined to go above and beyond, which Brandon found to be quite admirable.

However… Brandon could still see his son was _way_ in over his head, and it was high time to break that haughtiness and bring Paul back down to earth to face reality. How Brandon inherently knew Paul wasn't ready to take him on seriously yet was a mystery, but this was why Brandon humored him in the first place by allowing them to fight before their scheduled official challenge once Paul accomplished all of his tasks. Brandon figured Paul would succeed where Reggie failed if he had a traumatizing defeat to fuel his fighting prowess. Though Paul was more inclined to violence than Reggie ever was to begin with, Brandon was not going to take any chances. His faith in his sons was rather limited at this point. But if Paul was truly anything like Brandon was in his youth, the Pyramid King knew Paul would be able to bounce back from anything, unlike his brother.

"Very well," Brandon conceded. Brock, seeing that he wasn't needed after all, quietly made his way to the stands where his friends were. Ash stared at his very focused and determined rival, still in mild disbelief that just like this, Paul was making a bold move to do what his brother couldn't: defeat Brandon.

There was no need for a signal to begin the battle: Paul did it the old-fashioned way by reacting immediately, sending out a Pokémon. "Magmar, stand by for battle…!"

Brandon enjoyed seeing such initiative and quickly followed suit. "Regirock, I need your assistance!"

"Regirock…!" gasped Candice, in awe of seeing a Pokémon deemed of legendary status right in front of her. Dawn had never even heard of Regirock before, so she was quick to take out her PokéDex and learn a bit about it.

"_Regirock, the Rock Peak Pokémon. Regirock's body is made up of rock and if something chips off in battle, it attaches rocks to repair itself." _

"Sounds pretty resourceful, huh," Candice remarked.

Brock nodded in agreement. "I'd say Brandon's had Regirock for a long time now… even Ash couldn't defeat it."

Down on the field, Paul stared hard at the opponent he was faced with; not just the Pokémon, but also his past. "So Brandon starts with Regirock," he muttered. "Just like he did with my brother."

"I remember," Reggie said suddenly, getting everyone's attention. Seeing Regirock was a blast to his past as well, after all. "Paul was watching. Of course, that was back when my Pokémon and I were defeated by Brandon."

"So he was there the day you lost and retired," Brock realized. Things were finally beginning to make sense… why Paul felt so strongly about his brother's defeat, at least. "Then you faced Regirock, too?"

Reggie nodded somberly. He hated that he got himself into this topic just by being shocked by seeing Regirock again, but now he had no choice but to roll with it. "I did."

"Whoa, so Brandon really _has_ had Regirock for a long time," Ash remarked, having no idea Regirock had that many years of experience. "No wonder I couldn't beat it even with a type advantage…"

Of course Reggie remembered that day four years ago… there was no way he could forget, given that it forever changed both his life and his brother's… for the latter case especially.

"Even so, no excuse would work on my brother," Reggie mentioned, his expressions hardening. "Paul was a new trainer and he'd just gotten his Turtwig. He had gone to Kanto during his Sinnoh journey… because he wanted to watch my battle."

Back then, Paul didn't look too different, but at least in those days he wasn't so hesitant to crack a smile. What was truly different about him was on the inside… his beliefs. He always had an attitude, but he wasn't quite as cold all those years ago, though shades of Brandon did shine through at times, especially when it came to how he handled Reggie's loss and eventual retirement.

"He put his journey on hold just to see you battle Brandon?" Dawn asked, surprised by this. "That sure doesn't sound like something he'd do today…"

Much as it hurt his feelings to think about it, Reggie figured Dawn was right. "Yeah. It's not so out-there as you might think… back when I was a trainer, Paul traveled with me for the majority of my journey, so when he finally parted from me in Kanto on his tenth birthday to receive his Turtwig and his PokéDex, he already knew where I was headed and promised to see me through to the end. I guess you might say he was true to his word."

"He was travelin' with ya that whole time?" Ash inquired, completely thrown back by this. "Then again, I guess it's not unheard of…"

"You're right," Brock concurred. "Max accompanied his sister May through two regions even though he was too young to be a trainer. In spite of that, the knowledge he gained was invaluable, so you can bet when Max becomes old enough to be a trainer, he'll be a major contender early on because of his past experiences that most younger siblings don't really get."

Dawn's mouth was gaping wide open. "Ah…! Yeah, you guys told me about how her little brother traveled with you guys before you joined me. So if the same was true with Paul, then he must've had a huge headstart at the beginning if he traveled with you for so many years, Reggie."

"Exactly," Reggie affirmed. "He's still my kid brother, but he's wise behind his years, no doubt. Since he traveled with me, Paul never really made the kind of mistakes I did when I was a beginner. Even when he was that young, he was hitting the books and studying my technique very carefully."

"Man, I never had that advantage at all," Ash complained, scratching his head. "No wonder he keeps kickin' my butt…"

Zoey couldn't help but raise her eyebrow at this. The brothers didn't seem very close at all from what she saw so far, though it wasn't for lack of effort on Reggie's part. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. "It sounds like you guys were close, but then why does he hold that one loss against you so much? He's really quick to criticize you from what I've seen… was it really that bad?"

"Let's just… say Paul doesn't take well to changes in his life," Reggie explained, feeling awkward as he tried to word that in a way that wouldn't make them ask him more questions. "I had already gone from League to League and I felt ready to challenge Kanto's Battle Frontier, right around the time Paul turned ten. Due to my level of experience, I got through most of the Battle Frontier quite quickly. So to become a Frontier Brain, I had one more challenge I needed to face, and that was a battle against Brandon. But… we lost without defeating a single Pokémon."

Reggie couldn't help but wince as he recalled precisely what his father told him that day right after the battle ended.

"_NO! You challenged me and I truly did enjoy our battle today, but the fact remains that your battling style is little more than standard ordinary fare! Now where is your true inner strength?"_

"Harsh," Zoey sympathized as Reggie recalled the events for the group in detail. "And that's where you gave up?"

Reggie nodded. "Not only that, but Paul was asking himself that very question the second he heard it. As a beginning trainer, from the get-go Paul was determined to find his true inner strength."

Brock looked back to the battlefield, taking note of the new details he learned. "So the reason Paul's so obsessed with power is because of what happened to Reggie…"

Meanwhile, Brandon was sick of this stall for time, disgusted that his own son looked like he was about to choke at the last second. While the situation and the fact that this overdue battle was finally happening did shock Paul, he was also trying to figure out a way around Regirock. Already knowing it was powerful enough to take down six of Reggie's strongest Pokémon in their prime, Paul knew he had to play it safe with this one. He wasn't about to completely flop like his brother did. The type disadvantage was already a major misstep.

"Alright, I can handle anything you bring!" Brandon called out to him, knowing that mere taunts were always a weakness of Paul's. "Because that's my battling style." Yes, he also knew of how his battle with Reggie affected Paul for the long term.

However, Paul was not provoked enough to fall for this trick right now. He held out Magmar's Pokéball and recalled it immediately. "Magmar, return!"

"Return…?" Brandon figured Paul would charge right at him for certain. The fact that he was obviously playing it safe now told the Frontier Brain that his son was taking this battle very seriously.

Those who took this action for face value only, though, weren't able to comprehend this action. "What's with Paul?" Ash asked out loud.

"They haven't even started," Dawn muttered, shaking her head.

But it was easy to see why if one just paid attention to details well enough, such as Brock. "Paul must have decided that his Fire-type Magmar wouldn't be strong enough against Brandon's Rock-type Regirock."

"Hariyama, stand by for battle!" Paul yelled, sending out a Pokémon he hadn't used in quite some time. Obviously an early capture from his Hoenn days, Hariyama was once a much-less threatening Makuhita when Paul captured it. The "true inner strength" question that plagued Paul's mind was part of the reason why he was quick to capture a Fighting-type. It may have been a bit of a superficial resort in the past, but the type itself was a perfect choice to choose against Brandon.

Seeing another Pokémon she was unfamiliar with, Dawn drew out her PokéDex again.

"_Hariyama, the Arm Thrust Pokémon. Hariyama can send a truck flying with its powerful Arm Thrusts."_

"Sounds like the kind of Pokémon Paul would like," Dawn noted with a wince. She didn't like visualizing that entry in her head one bit.

Zoey, however, could see right away why Paul chose Hariyama. "A Fighting-type," she pointed out. "That's a good choice."

Brandon couldn't have cared less about his sudden disadvantage on the field. He was ready to get this over with already, hoping to get some satisfaction out of this. "Let's begin. Stone Edge, now!"

A very respectable and effective move, Stone Edge is. Paul knew well enough to get around that because he had been teaching his Torterra Stone Edge as well. Hariyama was bulky enough to take this on, and with the type advantage, he wasn't too worried. "Quick, block it!"

Hariyama's massive hands took the attack with ease; the rocks disintegrating upon impact. Paul was already suspicious… as far as he knew, Brandon wasn't the type to go easy on him. So why was Brandon practically giving Paul a perfect opening right off the bat? Paul decided it was high time to do a little taunting himself.

"You know Rock-type moves won't have much effect on Hariyama," Paul coldly reminded his father, really attempting to sound as condescending as he could. "Is this a test?"

This was the kind of reaction Brandon was looking for; he could already tell Paul was unsure of himself and the direction of this battle. "You'll have to see," he said back in quite the inviting tone.

Paul was willing enough to oblige him. "Arm Thrust!"

Now it was the full-frontal attack Paul was waiting for. Mirroring Paul's hatred for his father, Hariyama slammed its gargantuan palms against Regirock over and over, forcing it back as it took each hit directly. This was exactly the kind of thing Paul wished he could do to Brandon personally… thanks to his illness, however, the young trainer was beginning to think it would be nothing more than a distant fantasy. Paul aimed to overwhelm Regirock, figuring this onslaught would weaken it a bit.

However, Brandon remained firm as Regirock took the multiple Arm Thrust attacks until the precise, right moment. "Hold it down!"

Being in such close range, it was easy for Regirock to extend its arms and capture Hariyama within its grasp, even though it was being attacked nonstop. The grip was quick to be painful, causing the immobilized Hariyama to stop attacking.

"Oh no…!" Paul gasped out, not expecting a twist like this. He really didn't know his father as well as he thought, apparently. His mind raced to find a solution to this, but Brandon again reacted first.

"Now, Shock Wave!" Brandon commanded, smirking as Hariyama was ruthlessly electrocuted in addition to the crushing pain it was experiencing with Regirock's hold. After the attack, Hariyama managed to break away, but the visible twitching indicated that the damage had been done. The audience couldn't believe what they were seeing, either.

"Even after that much damage from Arm Thrust, Regirock has that much power!" Brock exclaimed. He had seen Regirock in action before, but not quite like this.

Reggie nodded somberly; he seemed to already know this round would soon be over. "I'd expect no less from Regirock…"

At least Hariyama was free now, enabling Paul to shout out whatever came to mind. He had a similar punishment in mind that would hopefully paralyze his opponent. "Force Palm…!"

"Use Focus Punch!" Brandon countered. In spite of inferior mobility and greater mass than Hariyama, Regirock was fluent enough in its movements to completely dodge the Force Palm assault, giving it the ample time needed to charge Focus Punch, which nailed Hariyama right on… unsurprisingly so, as Hariyama was essentially a huge target.

The point-blank bash to the head sent Hariyama to the ground. It quickly became obvious that it was not getting back up.

"It's unable to battle…" Candice remarked, purely in shock and surprise. This was giving her flashbacks to when she easily thrashed Paul's team, even though he wasn't in his right mind at that time. This time, there was no excuse to warrant this. Within a couple of attacks, Hariyama was knocked flat down even with a type advantage.

"That Regirock's tough," Ash stated, obviously enough. "What power!"

Paul silently recalled his Pokémon as usual, showing no sign of gratitude for its efforts whatsoever. While it was jarring to already be down one Pokémon, Paul was determined to not give into fear this early on. He quickly took out another Pokéball and tossed it. "Electabuzz, stand by for battle!"

Though Paul seemed sure of himself, Brandon had his doubts. "Huh…?" This choice was mildly perplexing for him, as it was the others.

"Why choose an Electric-type?" Candice wondered out loud. She knew Paul liked making challenges harder for himself, but this was ridiculous.

However, Ash quickly understood why Paul made this choice thanks to the time he invested in watching Paul sharpen Electabuzz's skills last night. "Of course; it makes total sense Paul would do that!"

The rest of the peanut gallery, Reggie included, just stared at Ash with widened eyes. How could _he_ see something they couldn't when normally it was the other way around?

"Brick Break!" Paul ordered, not about to give Brandon an opening to ruin his plans. This time, the result was as Paul expected; Electabuzz flawlessly executed the move and hit Regirock directly, surely causing some damage.

This move was being used quite frequently during training last night, which is why Ash predicted Paul's motives with ease. "I knew he was gonna use Brick Break, too!" he exclaimed, sort of impressed that he could somewhat read Paul's mind for once.

"Well, Brandon's Regirock _is_ a high-level Pokémon and Paul knows it," Reggie explained. He was beginning to understand why Paul was going this direction now… it was everything Reggie himself _didn't_ do in his own battle against Brandon. Paul kept true to his word in just about any situation… his determination to not become like Reggie. "So of course he's got to use an attack that'll be a powerful match."

"This is getting complicated," Dawn commented with a wince. "Just what else is Electabuzz going to do now, then?"

Zoey looked on at the battle scene. "We'll just have to wait and see…"

Brandon didn't miss a beat. "Stone Edge; go!"

Electabuzz didn't have a resistance to Rock-type attacks like Hariyama did, so Paul wasn't going to let this be what would screw him over. "Protect!"

Surely… _surely_ this would negate Regirock's attack without fail. After all, in every battle Paul had been in, nothing short of Feint could _break_ the Protect move.

Imagine the horror when Paul turned out to be wrong; Regirock was _so_ strong… and _so_ vastly outclassed Electabuzz… that even normally-surefire moves like Protect could _fail_ against the massive power Brandon possessed as one of the top trainers in the _entire world_.

Electabuzz was brutally thrown back and damaged by the unstoppable rocks after its Protect barrier was destroyed. Paul couldn't help but growl a bit at this point; things like this _weren't_ normally supposed to happen… so why were they? Even Brandon was mildly surprised that a mere Stone Edge attack could break a move like Protect. He began to wonder just how weak his second son really was… and it was something he didn't like thinking about.

"And Protect wasn't strong enough…" Candice muttered with a sigh. "What's going on here? That couldn't have been normal."

"Only a sheer difference in levels could cause that," Reggie said, sounding distant. "Nothing else… he really is capable of doing the impossible, isn't he…"

Paul was still too slow on the uptake as Brandon took up the next turn. "Now, Hyper Beam!"

To do the impossible and follow it up with an attack like that? It was beginning to befuddle _everybody._ One mere hit on a massively-weakened Electabuzz was more than enough to knock it out. That was it for the Electric Pokémon.

"I can't believe how easily he took out Paul's Electabuzz," Ash remarked, remembering how much trouble he had with that Pokémon even as an Elekid. Even he felt a bit inadequate seeing how easily Brandon took it out.

While Paul recalled Electabuzz, Brandon saw it fit to make his first substitution. "Good; Regirock, return!" Back into the Pokéball Regirock went after easily taking down a third of Paul's team.

Brock nodded, understanding why Brandon chose now to switch. "After using Hyper Beam, a Pokémon can't act right away, so it's good he's making an exchange now."

Unlike Paul, Brandon wasn't bothering trying to make this harder for himself. That wasn't what Brandon had in mind; he merely decided to show Paul directly how foolishly stubborn he was and how that was leading his unfortunate son on a downward spiral. Indeed… it was Brandon's toughest example of tough love. At least he was privileging Paul by letting him see more than just Regirock this time as he threw his next Pokéball. "Registeel, I need your assistance…!"

Since Regirock had left such an impact, the group was more than unsettled to see a fearsome relative come out to the field. Dawn was making a habit out of abusing her PokéDex now, it seemed.

"_Registeel, the Iron Pokémon. Because Registeel's body has been tempered by underground pressure for thousands of years, its body cannot be scratched."_

"That's just… wow," Zoey commented. "You can't even scratch it? These Regis are definitely living up to their hype…"

"A Registeel…" Paul had seen Registeel through video phone conversations with Brandon, but that was it, and mostly it was when Brandon announced to his family that he captured it. Being a solid Steel-type, however… the choice seemed obvious. "Magmar, stand by for battle!"

Zoey nodded as Magmar was sent out. "Well, Fire-types have the advantage over Steel-types…"

"At this point, I'm beginning to doubt types even matter anymore in this battle," Brock wondered out loud.

"Use Flamethrower!" Paul shouted, immediately on the offense again. Registeel merely stood there and took the full attack, being utterly engulfed in the flames.

"A direct hit…!" Ash exclaimed. He was in awe watching Registeel buried under the bright, burning flames… Brandon was also finally looking a bit concerned, not expecting that much power out of Paul after his first two examples. However, the concern vanished as Registeel broke through the flames and survived the attack… still _standing_, even. Like the PokéDex entry said, nothing could land a scratch on Registeel.

Paul was aghast at this; he saw Registeel _burning_ and it was still alright? "But how…?"

The elder brother watched closely, trying to make sense of this occurrence. "It must've had an effect, but… it's hanging in."

"Like a Steel-type," Brock supplemented. Reggie nodded in agreement.

"True to its type's _stereotype_…"

It was to Brandon's advantage to leave everyone in shock, of course. He was able to cut ahead of Paul in reaction time this way. "Use Iron Head!"

Once Paul heard his father's voice again, he immediately issued a command to counter the move. "Block it, and then Will-O-Wisp!"

He noticed Registeel was at least affected by Fire-type attacks, so Paul knew to stick with what worked and try to leave a burn on Registeel to gradually weaken it enough for him to knock out. Though Magmar tried to fend off Iron Head with its forearms, it simply wasn't powerful enough to completely negate it… again, in spite of its type advantage. Brock was turning out to be right about opposing types being meaningless in this battle. Even direct super-effective attacks weren't enough to bring down the powerhouse named Brandon.

Magmar was knocked back, but not knocked out. However, instead of executing Will-O-Wisp as ordered, Magmar was suddenly overcome with fear and cowered away instead.

Paul couldn't believe this. "Magmar's scared?" The very thing that _shouldn't_ be displayed in front of Brandon…

"Where's the Will-O-Wisp…?" Dawn asked, almost panicked. She'd never seen such a fierce, one-sided battle before.

Brock was there to supply the answers. "Iron Head may cause opponents to flinch, and then it prevents them from attacking."

There was no way Paul could rely on Magmar like this. He hastily recalled Magmar back into its Pokéball and sent out its replacement. "Now, Nidoking! Stand by for battle…!"

Reggie raised an eyebrow at this. He was wondering why Paul was suddenly using Pokémon he hadn't used in a long time for a battle like this, but he realized this must have been what Paul wanted his privacy for earlier on today. He plotted out this party at the last minute once he saw that Brandon was in the area… based on types, Reggie figured that perhaps Torterra would be his trump card as usual, but Nidoking was also one of Paul's considerably stronger Pokémon.

Dawn again brought out her PokéDex to analyze a Pokémon unfamiliar to her.

"_Nidoking, the Drill Pokémon. One swing of its mighty tail can snap a telephone pole as if it were nothing but a matchstick."_

Upon hearing that, Dawn gulped. "Paul… really likes the scary ones, doesn't he?"

"If I had to guess, I'd say he seems more interested in function than looks and nature," Zoey hypothesized.

"Paul's been through many regions at this point," Reggie reminded them all. "And he keeps his reserves with me, so believe me when I say he has… quite a variety in spite of what you're seeing here."

Dawn looked back at her PokéDex entry and realized something. "Nidoking is a Poison-type, but I thought Poison-type moves don't work on Steel-types. Isn't that right?"

"That's true, but Nidoking is also a Ground-type, whose moves are effective on Steel-types," Zoey informed her rival. "We'll have to wait and see which move he calls."

But once again, Brandon was quick to take initiative. "Use Flash Cannon!"

That nearly-blinding attack hit Nidoking head-on, but unlike Paul's other Pokémon, it was relatively unscathed afterwards, only being forced to bend back a bit. After getting itself straightened out, Paul knew it was time to strike hard and finally take Registeel down. "Earth Power, now!"

Nidoking glowed with a bright light of power briefly before it slammed its fist into the ground, causing sudden tremors that directly approached Registeel. Another precise hit it was, as Registeel was visibly harmed by the attack and _almost_ fell over once all was said and done… almost. Brandon's eyes widened at this, as he knew how difficult it was to actually push Registeel back this far. "Well, that's some impressive strength," he admitted. Perhaps he had too little faith in Paul after all.

And Paul wasn't done yet. "Double Kick!"

He was determined to not let his guard down this time and completely overwhelm his opponent for once. In spite of Nidoking's size and girth, it easily jumped high up enough to kick Registeel twice from overhead, sending it stumbling back even more… and yet it still remained on its feet after seeming like it would finally fall. The audience waited for Registeel to fall with bated breath and was horrified to see what actually happened.

"Whoa," Ash remarked. "A hit like that and Registeel's _still_ up!"

Paul just tried to shake it off and continue. "Now use Thunderbolt!" he ordered. He wanted to afflict that Registeel with _some_ kind of status… any status would do at this point.

"Iron Head; go!" Brandon countered, winning this clash. As Nidoking zapped Registeel, it charged at an unbelievable speed at the Drill Pokémon with a full-force Iron Head attack.

Even with a Pokémon that finally managed to really affect Brandon, Nidoking _still_ wasn't enough. After a direct hit like that, it fainted.

"Nidoking's unable to battle, too!" Zoey exclaimed, thinking over the previous few turns that transpired. "It _was_ a good attack, though… I guess he's not that bad a trainer after all, but still…"

That was three down for Paul now… half his team was unable to continue while Brandon hadn't even lost one on his side yet. Though Nidoking reflected the inherent abilities Brandon wanted to believe Paul had, his performance was still pitiful overall for a battle he was so serious about having. If he was this far behind, Brandon figured it would be a _long_ time before Paul would be strong enough to even remotely become a threat. That… actually depressed him. Pushing that aside for now, however, Brandon decided he would have to invoke Paul's rage the best way he knew how: by exposing his weaknesses. Though Brandon barely spent any quality time with his kids, he could read them like a book… especially Paul, who was always more reflective of his youth than Reggie was. All Brandon needed to do was recall what lit his fighting spirit on fire as a child… truth be told, there were many similarities between Paul and Brandon that hadn't come to light yet for anyone but the Pyramid King himself.

All Brandon had to do… was think about the people he despised the most. What he needed to do became clear.

"All right, what's _wrong?_" Brandon taunted, making sure Paul wouldn't be able to ignore that demeaning tone of his… not to mention abusing his privileges as a "strictly professional acquaintance" rather than an estranged father. "And here I thought you wanted to _beat_ the man who defeated your brother."

Paul finally came to his senses and recalled Nidoking to its Pokéball before glaring daggers at Brandon. Just hearing him talk like that already made him become increasingly unstable. The remains of his self-control were evident in his reply. "The truth is, it's only because you defeated Reggie that my victory over _you_ will have meaning." But that was not the truth at all… "The challenge you always present to trainers to find their own strength…"

And just then, he snapped mid-sentence. "… _Was something my brother wasn't able to do!"_

Brandon blinked at the sudden outburst. Reggie's expressions hardened as he was namedropped by his family. It was so hard to keep everything under wraps… he could tell the battle would get unnecessarily brutal from here and he wanted to play mediator like he often did between Paul and Brandon, but in this crowd, there was just no way. All he could do was watch as his little brother completely lost his cool after all this time, evident with his raised fists now shaking.

"But I'm not like my brother!" Paul shouted. "My _will_ gives me strength! And now, you'll see it firsthand!"

That was all Brandon needed to know Paul had no chance whatsoever in winning this battle. A superficial answer like that wasn't going to sway him; just convince him that Paul had no idea what he was talking about and really was making this up as he went along. Though there was some truth in what Paul said, as his willpower was probably the only thing that finally got him in Snowpoint City, the fact was he was too reliant on his own stubborn nature, assuming that he would outlast any opponent by that virtue alone. But as evident with Candice a few days ago, obviously that wasn't enough to overcome a competent opponent. Paul still hadn't learned from his prior mistakes… because he was blinded by his rage; his hatred for his father.

Brandon hoped he wouldn't have to go this low, because he was sure what kind of answer he would get from his son… but he found that he was left with no choice.

"NO!" Brandon bellowed, startling everyone in the stands but Reggie, who was more than used to this reaction by now. "All wrapped up in the past…" he remarked with disgust. "But then why do you walk the Pokémon path in the first place?"

Paul was losing it, as if the wrinkles under his eyes weren't telling enough. He couldn't believe he was being asked a question like this in the middle of their battle… with all these people watching…

And then… Brandon dropped the bomb that would end his child for sure: "Tell me, why do you battle?"

Of all things… this was something Paul never really thought about before. There were other ways to get his point across to his father… so why did he choose to do it with Pokémon, which he was rather unqualified for training and taking care of? It made perfect sense for a person like Reggie… he had an inherent love for Pokémon while Paul… did not. It made no real sense why Paul was a Pokémon trainer at all.

Once Paul realized that… once he was forced to take everything but Pokémon out of the equation for his motives… only then was he finally enlightened, but it was one that he wished never dawned upon him.

Paul had _no idea_ why he worked with Pokémon. He had no answer for Brandon's inquiry.

That… was what Brandon expected, sadly. With no clue as to what he was doing with Pokémon, this was precisely why he had doubts in Paul ever reaching his level of achievement, much less surpassing it. Even with Reggie, the quitter, it seemed less hopeless.

But Paul… always bounced back. Brandon knew this to be true; if Paul could one day answer this question with validity, then the sky was the limit for him.

Until then… he was stuck here, right where he was… on a massive _losing streak_.

"Young man."

Paul snapped out of it, giving his father a murderous glare.

"I asked you a question," Brandon reminded him. "So tell me right now… what are you fighting for?"

The audience looked to Paul, awaiting his answer. Though Reggie looked skeptical; he too knew that Paul's motives were… either questionable or nonexistent. Paul could feel it, too; he could feel himself being watched and _judged _by those in the stands.

But he still didn't know what to say… other than growl as his emotional restraints finally gave way to his raw, uncontrolled _rage_.

"NOW, LAIRON! STAND BY FOR BATTLE!"

Brandon sighed. He didn't want to go so far as to _break_ Paul, but he saw now that there was no choice. It wouldn't be much longer, he knew… and then this hurdle could finally be overcome.

A very shaken Dawn lifted up her PokéDex once more. She never heard Paul sound like this before, but now that she had, her image of him completely changed for the worse.

"_Lairon, the Iron Armor Pokémon. It digs up iron ore for food and smashes its steely body up against others in battles over territory."_

While saddened that it came down to this, Reggie wondered why Paul bothered taking a chance on something like Lairon against a man who was viewed as the ultimate challenge. From what Reggie remembered, Paul never cared that much for Lairon and couldn't even be bothered to fully evolve it even though it was one of the first Pokémon he caught by himself. Paul actually saw this as a perfect opportunity to invoke an evolution in Lairon so he would finally get his Aggron… not to mention its typing was ideal for going against Brandon. Then again, Paul hadn't been thinking straight all day. There was just _too much going on_ for him to handle.

Brandon decided that while Paul had pretty much lost his mind at this point to further confuse him by choosing this moment to make his exchange. "Registeel, return!" All eyes were glued to Brandon as he sent out the final member of his famous legendary trio… "Regice, I need your assistance!"

"He's… gonna use an Ice-type against a Rock and Steel-type…?" Zoey asked no one in particular.

"They sure are alike," Candice quietly muttered, but her comment did not slip by Brock's ears.

Brock looked back at Candice questioningly. "What was that…?"

"Ack…!" Candice just grinned and laughed in a panicked way that practically screamed the fact that she was forcing it out. "Nothing, nothing!" She did _not_ want to be the center of attention again.

"Anyway, it's obvious now," Reggie confirmed, unable to force a smile at this point. "Types… really are irrelevant in this battle."

Though Paul was consumed with rage by this point, he actually decided on a defensive beginning for once. "Iron Defense!"

Lairon's steely body gleamed as the technique took effect. Dawn stared at this, thinking she could put her finger on this for once. "Is that…?"

"Right, it increases defensive power," Brock confirmed, knowing Dawn was too shaken by this battle to finish her sentences now.

"Yeah, Paul wants to hang in there and look for a chance to counter-strike," Reggie added, knowing this would be the only reason why his desperate brother wouldn't lash out at the beginning.

However, Brandon paid no mind to this and proceeded to attack. "Ice Beam; go!"

"What the…?" Lairon stood there and took the hit… but increased defenses were absolutely worthless in this case, as the odds went against Paul once again. He looked on in pure, abject horror as he watched his Lairon become frozen solid in a block of ice, which was a possible side-effect if a target was hit with this attack.

Paul was sunk, and all he could do was growl about it, wishing that he would have challenged his father to a fist-fight or something less emotionally-draining instead. It was bad enough that for most of Paul's major battles since Byron was he constantly falling victim to the frozen status, which then rendered his Pokémon useless.

There was nothing else Paul could do but watch Brandon take out his Lairon without breaking a sweat. "Zap Cannon!" Brandon was actually thankful this happened, as this was a nice way of ending the battle faster. He knew now that he'd seen enough, and absolutely the best Paul had to offer him… it was time to accept the truth: Paul wasn't ready yet; not even close.

Lairon was down. Ash was particularly downtrodden by this. "Man, Lairon didn't even get to attack once…" It was something he was looking forward to every time he saw a new Pokémon of Paul's… even though Lairon wasn't "new", per se… it was still new to him.

Four down and two to go; Paul recalled Lairon and sent out his only _fresh_ Pokémon left on the team. He seemed to know it, too, as he was back to growling and shaking uncontrollably as he threw out his next Pokéball as hard as he could. "URSARING, STAND BY FOR BATTLE!"

Even if he was fighting a losing battle, Paul didn't want to go down like a wimp… Brandon could commend him for that much at least, though it was depressing at the same time to see Paul go through all this trouble when he was going to lose, anyway.

"Use Hammer Arm!" Paul shouted at the top of his lungs. Yes, it was a wise move for him to have taken his medication prior to the match. Otherwise, his body would have failed him a while ago.

Brandon narrowed his eyes, determined to outdo his son in every way possible. "Focus Punch; go!"

Ursaring still remained a powerhouse of Paul's team, and therefore fared a bit better against the Pyramid King's Pokémon, matching Regice hit for hit until their clashes brought about an explosion, sending both Pokémon back sliding, but both still able to continue. That was nice; Brandon had to take what he could get from his son's abysmal attempt to defeat him. The small moments of standstill gave way to the two trainers giving commands almost simultaneously.

"Now, Focus Blast!" Paul cried out.

"Zap Cannon!" was Brandon's next move. Though Brandon called his out later, the execution of Focus Blast would prove to be detrimental to Paul just as it was for Reggie against Maylene when they battled last. Zap Cannon smacked into Ursaring before it could even launch Focus Blast, effectively cancelling the attack altogether.

Ursaring wasn't knocked down, but like Nidoking, it was going to likely need some sort of Pokémon chiropractor in the future as far back as its spine was bent from the force of the attack. The stunned look on Ursaring before it finally slumped over made it evident that something was wrong with it.

Ash had no idea, of course. "Whoa, what happened?" He hoped Brandon wasn't going too hard on Paul… Ash would know, after all.

"Zap Cannon _always_ paralyzes the target if it hits," Brock pointed out. It was also evident that Zap Cannon hit Ursaring so hard that even its Guts ability wasn't going to save it this time. Against someone like Brandon, Ursaring may as well have been frozen in a block of ice like the previous times.

Paul knew it. This was a lost cause… and his adrenaline was beginning to peter out. He was still viciously angry, but now with Ursaring rendered useless… Paul could only glare at his father who did this to his Pokémon.

"Why isn't Paul switching?" Ash asked everybody after realizing that Paul was suddenly rather stationary.

Brandon had no interest in one last stall for time, however. "Now, Regice, return!" he commanded, making what he hoped would be his final substitution. "Regirock, I need your assistance…!"

Suddenly, Paul was riled up once more upon seeing the symbol of his past… the Pokémon that made Reggie give up and consequently made Paul lose his ability to trust people or even take in a bit of good faith. It was like a slap to his face, and Brandon was well aware of it, too. "Regirock _again?_"

"Use Stone Edge!" The Frontier Brain paid no mind to Paul's hissy fits, only interested in ending this battle. In Ursaring's already-poor condition, it was needless to say the following attack crushed it completely beyond usability in this fight. It too was unable to battle.

Paul was sick of looking at it anyway; on the whole he'd been dissatisfied with Ursaring's performance lately and quickly recalled it. "Ursaring, return!"

"Paul had already given up on Ursaring," Reggie said as a belated response to Ash; he wanted to wait and see just to be sure, but this was what he figured out when he first saw it. "He just stopped giving it commands…"

"Hm…" Ash couldn't help but feel sorry for Paul at this point. This was very different from the time he watched Paul battle Cynthia to a full battle and lost miserably; at least then Paul knew when to quit. He had no idea why, but even though this battle was going no better than the one against Sinnoh's Champion, Paul just _refused_ to concede defeat until he would be forced to; needlessly so, at that.

He really wondered what it was about the battle with Brandon that kept Paul as stubborn as Ash himself. The boy from Pallet Town never really had issues with family pride and whatnot. For all the times Ash encountered Paul before, never once was he this fierce… nor desperate, or even vulnerable. It was obvious even to Ash that Paul was doing himself no favors by losing his cool, but then again, that wasn't something Paul was able to control after a while. Reggie was actually impressed that Paul held in his rage for as long as he did, but he had a feeling that things would get too volatile for his little brother to be able to keep it up. It was Reggie who was truly the master of keeping his true feelings locked away within himself, but for now, he wouldn't acknowledge the fact that he was just as upset as Paul was, just by watching this…

Reggie realized his brother was right; now that nothing apparently ailed either of them, Brandon was back to his familiar cold and distant self. There was nothing to enjoy about this reunion whatsoever. He doubted even if Brandon finally caught Regigigas that it would make up for the nightmare he had just put Paul through. But… the nightmare wouldn't have to last for much longer, as Paul sent out his final Pokémon able to fight… who had already suffered a myriad of problems already…

"Now Magmar, stand by for battle!" Paul cried out, as if he still thought he could do _something_… somehow make his mark and show Brandon how far he had come. But ever since that question was directed towards him… Paul knew that's all what Brandon would care about until he finally gave an answer. Chances were that Brandon would never battle him again until he could find that answer.

The entire audience looked saddened as they watched Magmar come to the field a third time.

"Paul's last Pokémon…" Dawn mumbled. She too was feeling very sorry for Paul right now, though was also clueless as to why he was behaving so differently from before.

"Not only is it a bad matchup, but Regirock's just too powerful," Candice pointed out, hating to being faced with the harsh reality of this final battle. There was no doubt about it. "It's almost over…"

It was indeed the homestretch. All it required was one more move.

By now, it really didn't matter what Paul did. This was the end, and even though this was wrecking his body like crazy, Paul hated for it to end. Once this was over, it was time to face reality again as the walking dead… and accept the fact that he might not live long enough to become a real challenge for his father. Fear was hard to resist now; Paul really was afraid this would be the last time he'd ever get to challenge Brandon. In spite of that, the unfortunate trainer failed with flying colors.

"Now, Flamethrower!" That was Paul's last command. He knew it was a bad move to use against Regirock, but even if it wasn't, it wouldn't have been enough to make a difference. This was simply Paul's way of going out with a bang.

Said bang was easily nullified by Regirock's bulky, fire-resistant arms. It was finally time to end this.

"Shock Wave, let's go now!" Brandon called out. He figured he'd done enough damage to Paul by now to not need to rub salt in the wound with Stone Edge.

Despite that, it was a brutal and critical hit that smacked hard into an already-weary Magmar. It slumped over, its arms hanging like noodles as it tried its best to remain on its feet. Magmar knew it was Paul's last hope… and it remembered what Paul said to his entire team just before the match. Was it really Magmar's fault? This entire battle seemed utterly hopeless from start to finish… but was it a good idea to start doubting the trainer?

That would be a matter to worry about for another time; Magmar had no strength left as it fell to the ground at last. That was that; Brandon utterly swept his son… just like he had done with Reggie four years ago.

Once the action subsided, the drama was quick to take over. Paul looked on at his fallen Magmar, both looking and sounding effectively broken. He really thought this would finally be the day his old man would get his comeuppance. Paul was honestly sure of himself when he hastily put a plan together to deal with Brandon the second he laid his eyes on that flying pyramid in Snowpoint City. He wanted to believe he was ready… but he wasn't. He couldn't do what his brother couldn't, nor could he do what Ash did. As if that weren't bad enough, there was a large group of people that had witnessed this firsthand… this wasn't a dirty little secret Paul could sweep under the rug like his disease.

The experience had been surreal for every person within the facility. Yet Candice of all people was the only one who knew about said dirty little secret, though in turn was fully unaware of Paul and Brandon's relation… but ever-so-slightly, she was picking up on it. Brock was more suspicious than ever before; like Ash, he watched Paul battle Cynthia and was surprised that Paul didn't have good sense to quit when it was made obvious that he had no chance of winning. That was _precisely_ what Paul did against Cynthia – despite it being a full battle, Paul understood when he had already lost after four of his Pokémon fell to the opponent and didn't hesitate to forfeit. Here, though… Paul _couldn't_ have been unaware of it, but around Brandon, he acted completely differently regardless. It was only then that Brock decided he should attempt to speak with Reggie in private the next time he got the chance. While it was true that it was none of his business when it came down to it, Brock couldn't simply turn away now after all the time he invested in studying Paul's actions since coming to Sinnoh.

Zoey wasn't sure what to make of this. While she did think it was rather strange how Paul and Brandon interacted with each other, she had only met these two less than twenty-four hours ago. Already within that timeframe, Paul was showing many different sides of himself that made him quite difficult to read. The Top Coordinator-hopeful at least understood why Ash and the others even bothered with him in the first place, though; to say the least, he… was a very interesting case. After seeing this battle, Zoey gained even more respect for Ash when it hit her that the boy she formerly disliked actually defeated a fierce trainer like Brandon. Of course, the circumstances must have been different from now (especially when Ash admitted he never actually defeated Regirock), but that made him no less impressive in Zoey's eyes. She was looking forward to how both trainers would progress through the rest of their journey now.

Never before had Dawn felt sorrier for Paul than she did now. She clutched her Piplup tightly, hearing it squeak in response before quietly issuing an apology. The battle was absolutely horrifying for her… she could see why the prize won from Brandon here was called the _Brave_ Symbol. One would need nerves of steel to not break down in front of this intimidating, powerful man. That made her all the more curious as to how Ash managed to beat him, especially given that Paul until recently had been routinely making short work of Ash in battle. But after taking it all in, going this far made Dawn's head hurt. Understanding now that the Battle Frontier was a way of saying a trainer was in the big leagues, she wondered how a first-year Coordinator like her would be able to perform in the big league equivalent of her path. It didn't help realizing that Ash only got the opportunity after over three years of training and battling. This went a long way in giving Dawn even more humility as she had to face the facts… and Paul here was a prime example of this: you can want something as badly to the ends of time and do whatever you can to get it. But in the end, _none_ of that guaranteed that you would be successful. She had understood now that winning the Grand Festival was not going to be a mere one-year feat for her in all likelihood. She would still try her best, but if she failed this time… Dawn knew not to take it too hard. It didn't seem fair, but then again… life was never fair.

Ash had no idea why he felt this badly at seeing Paul lose. Really, as horrible as his rival had been to him and Pokémon alike, a loss like this would have served him right. It made him feel incredibly lucky and special remembering that he had actually beat Brandon already and earned his way through the Battle Frontier, but thinking back on that… it was only a 4-on-4 battle like he one he just had with Candice yesterday. Only Regice of the legendary trio was used in that particular battle and it was a fresh capture at the time. While Ash did face the other two Regis in previous attempts to defeat Brandon, he didn't beat either of them, and he only barely beat Regice to begin with.

He wondered… if he were in Paul's shoes, would he have done any better? This was no time to judge Paul now; foolish as he was to make the battle this way, it was admirable that Paul really wanted to go through with that kind of thing. The idea of a full battle with Brandon with half his team being Regi legendaries made Ash feel a little sick to his stomach. Even with his ultra-powerful reserves, Ash won against Brandon by the skin of his teeth. He still wondered why Paul didn't just forfeit before it got this bad like he did against Cynthia, but for now he was too preoccupied, feeling sympathy for his rival. "Paul lost…" he muttered. "After all that."

That was exactly what was on Reggie's mind right now. He knew Paul must have had this battle on the brain for the past month since the challenge was issued. After all the work Paul went through just to make it here and make this battle happen (and Reggie _still_ didn't know the half of it), the result ended up like this regardless. No better than him… Reggie knew Paul was going to have a hard time living this down, especially since so many people were witnesses to it. As far as he recalled, Paul fought a _lot_ harder than he did back then. Just as Reggie was beginning to feel good about his chances, this brought down his mood tremendously. He wasn't sure just how he and Paul stacked up these days, but Reggie figured his brother must be on par with him somehow. Knowing that… Reggie understood that there was still a lot of work to be done; this battle was proof of it.

Perhaps Paul had more of an uphill battle than his brother after all… this was something Reggie wanted to find out soon. Right now, he knew he was going to need to spend some quality time with his brother and get him through the healing process, because it was fairly obvious that Paul was going to need some help to make it through this.

Brandon stared down hard at Paul, who could no longer look him in the face. Once the terror phase had come and gone, Paul was slowly brought back down to earth, certainly looking worse for wear. He was dead silent as he finally recalled Magmar, who hadn't moved an inch since fainting. Once that was done, Paul felt so drained that his Pokéball nearly slipped through his hand's grasp as he let it down gently, though couldn't resist the urge to shiver. He slumped over, eyes closed and completely humbled by his experience. Paul couldn't even fathom what all went wrong with this battle, but the real question was… could he have performed _any_ worse? Brandon met him at every corner and every moment; whenever Paul _did_ land a hit, it might as well have missed. The damage he dealt did nothing but maybe extend the battle a couple of minutes. Whatever strategic move Paul had, Brandon negated it without fail. Every time there was a chance for a side effect when Brandon went on the offensive, it happened and crippled Paul's team in the process. The other way around, try as Paul did to afflict at least one of the Regis with a status effect, lady luck never shined upon him… almost as if he were _meant_ to lose this battle.

The Pyramid King himself chose his next words carefully. It was his duty to give trainers who failed against him the proper constructive criticism; the tricky part was being able to give it while not compromising the confidentiality agreement. A major part of Paul's poor performance, as Brandon saw, was due to his lack of focus. Much unlike his brother, Paul was terrible when it came to managing stress. So much of that stress had to do with family issues that Brandon couldn't vocalize at this time… but he couldn't just leave Paul beside himself like this.

"Young man."

That got Paul's attention, though he didn't move… not even to open his eyes.

"This battle of yours… is that your _true_ battle? The battle you'll present in the future?" Brandon asked, though not expecting an answer, of course. Reggie was a little surprised Brandon didn't holler a deafening "NO!" at first.

While it was very hard to maintain the position of power that Brandon held, the hardest thing of all for him – _always_ – was to be a father. Even before his wife died, he struggled, though at least then he had her support and guidance. After that, Brandon had absolutely no idea what to do with himself, much less his kids. In spite of the lack of true respect he should have had for his sons, Brandon knew he would be awful to leave Paul hanging like this and had to leave _something_ positive for him as a father should. All this he had to do… without actually coming off as a father. He only hoped that Paul would truly understand his message rather than take it at face value.

"You've done an excellent job raising and training your Pokémon," he said earnestly; that much was evident at least with Nidoking. "But you allow your emotions to betray you on the battlefield!"

This part he said much more forcefully; Brandon was determined to get his point across. It seemed to work, as Paul finally managed to look up and lock eyes with him again. Abysmal as Paul may have been in controlling his anger, he held in his urge to cry _very_ well. It seemed vague, but Paul kept in mind that this was what he wanted. Desperate as he was for his father's words, had had to take what he could get from pure inference. With Brandon… he expected no less. This was the best way to convey Paul's biggest flaws as a trainer without going beyond the professional way of speaking. In addition to the question that would haunt him every day until he found a good answer for it, Paul had to come to terms with his lack of restraint. He was usually good at reserving himself, but a choice few were exceptions to this rule; many of which were in the stands right now.

But Brandon was the biggest exception of all… Paul, despite hating his father, was unable to consider that detail secondary to Brandon's status as a trainer. It largely had to do with Brandon's attitude; his professional and personal sides were similar in more ways than one. That alone invoked a powerful rage within the young trainer. He didn't have fond memories of his parents before his mother died, so he honestly didn't feel the connection that Reggie felt with Brandon, which enabled Reggie to forgive his father for his shortcomings.

As he stared hard at Brandon, the Pyramid King was delighted to see the hatred subdued at this time. He was already making an effort to rectify his weakness… and this was quite indicative of Paul bouncing back from a fall. Even if Paul himself didn't know it at the time… Brandon made it clear now that Paul really had nothing to worry about.

"We _will_ battle again when you've learned to control them," Brandon assured with a smile. It wasn't his usual smug smile at all; that was the smile he once had when he was a full-time dad. Paul didn't recognize it, but he felt himself beginning to calm down at last. Brandon's changed tone and his swear to maintain the original challenge he set for Paul did much to save him from that endless pit of despair. Paul would still fear his illness holding him back later on, but for now this turned into a surprisingly nice moment. But all that was apparent on Paul's face was the calm; _not_ the warm feeling inside him. Having lost this badly, though, Paul felt he had no right to even speak back. He merely bowed his head to show that he understood everything Brandon said.

And that was that. Brandon nodded back to his son and started to turn away from the battlefield. "Until then… best of luck. I'll look forward to seeing you in battle again."

He was walking off… and with him went those brief moments of the balancing calm that filled Paul's battle-ravaged body. Paul looked up to watch his father leave, his eyes widening and mouth gaping as that odd, almost fuzzy feeling faded away. He stumbled forward slightly and made a feeble reach towards where his father once was with the pitiful amount of energy he had left within him. Upon realizing that everyone was still watching him, however, Paul just froze after that before slowly easing down to a standing position as before.

Brock made a mental note of this just now. He was almost certain what he believed was true… and he'd make a point to talk to Reggie for sure to confirm his suspicions.

Reggie stood up first, letting out a small sigh as he continued to stare down at his brother, who apparently had no intention of leaving anytime soon. "Don't worry about it, guys," he assured. "Just leave him to me. Either way, we'd best be going."

"But this time, there's actually a _need_ to worry," Dawn muttered as she stood up. "I mean, that fight…"

"Just have faith in Reggie," Zoey assured her. "If anyone can get Paul back to his usual jerk self, it's gonna be his older brother for sure…" But after saying something that rude, Zoey tensed up and grinned awkwardly at Reggie. "Er, no offense, of course…"

Reggie just smiled and shrugged. "None taken. I know he can be hard to deal with most of the time, but I can tell you all want him to change for the better. Hopefully… after today, that can begin."

"Wonder if he'll be a little nicer to me from now on," Ash thought out loud as he stood up and stretched. Continually looking down at Paul, however, Ash had an apprehensive look on his face as he thought about what he just said. "Eh… probably not."

It was rather funny of Ash to say that, Reggie thought. He chuckled a bit as he watched everyone slowly make their way out of the stands and towards the exit. "We'll just have to see. Brandon's probably waiting to escort you guys out of here by now," or so Reggie assumed. "Paul and I know our way around this place, so we'll escort ourselves out."

Brock wondered how those two could know the Battle Pyramid that well if they had only allegedly been in there all of two times. But, that was a question for another day… right now, there were many loaded questions stacked on top of one another as a result of today's events.

"Seeya soon, then," Ash said in a temporary farewell. The crowd gradually emptied out of the arena until only the two lowly brothers were left. Reggie was very careful in his movements, not wanting to do anything sudden that might possibly upset his little brother. He had a very lost and confused look on his face… which wasn't really something Reggie expected, admittedly.

Paul had to know Reggie was right beside him, but paid no mind to his older sibling regardless. There was just too much on his mind at the moment.

Reggie was not fond of the following periods of awkward silence, especially in a spacious area like this where a vicious battle just transpired. He had to break the ice somehow… however hard it was trying to find the right thing to say at a time like this. "You've lost battles before, Paul. It's no big deal."

But Paul didn't respond.

Reggie's genuine smile ever-quickly turned into a forced one. "You're… okay, right? If you're not…"

"I felt something," he said suddenly, cutting Reggie off. He still wouldn't look at his brother. "Weird…"

"Felt what?" Reggie was intrigued; what could Paul be feeling other than the sting of defeat? "Good weird? Bad weird?"

Paul held a hand to his chest for a moment before shaking his head. "I… don't know. I only felt it for a couple of minutes." He had been feeling even worse than before once that feeling left him… the one invoked by Brandon of all people. It was incomprehensible to Paul why he suddenly felt like this. "… Anyway, let's go now."

He wanted to cry; _oh_, how he wanted to cry… but not here. Not in this place. Paul rather would not cry in the first place, but if he would be forced to eventually, then by the gods he would be deciding where and when. But inside Reggie's van sounded like a good place to start… provided the kids didn't follow.

"Don't rush; take all the time you need," Reggie urged, resting his hands on Paul's shoulders. "I know what you're going through right now…"

Just being reminded that he was no better than his brother set Paul off immediately. He kept his calm for the most part, save for his facial expressions. They were back to being dark and menacing as per usual as he glared straight at Reggie just then. "I _don't want to be here anymore,"_ he clarified in a low growl.

After hearing that, Reggie quickly let go of Paul and backed off a step or two. He got the point. "Right, right. So how about we go outside now?"

That seemed to be an affirmative for Paul as he silently walked towards the exit. Though he felt a little dizzy after what he had been through today, his desire to leave this desolate place overpowered it. Of course Reggie was still worried about how Paul would react to his devastating loss throughout the day, so it went without saying that the elder brother was going to keep an eye on him for a while until he finally mellowed out. At the same time, Reggie hated to just leave it like that. Just winning against Candice eventually wasn't going to make that pain go away, and Reggie knew it. On his way out of the Battle Pyramid, he started brainstorming ideas to help get Paul back on his feet. There was an uncomfortable silence again for all parties involved as they made their way out of the Battle Pyramid. For once, they knew better than to try talking to Paul at a time like this.

* * *

Once they made it outside again, Paul quickened his pace to catch up with Candice and Zoey. He stopped right ahead of the Gym Leader to get her attention. Still, he wouldn't bring himself to look at her, though he seemed a bit more evened out after walking off some of the stress. "You can expect to see me at the Snowpoint Gym," he said suddenly, prompting everyone else to stop and stare. Paul felt the need to clarify. "… But not today," he made specific. "I'll give you a call to reschedule."

Candice smiled and nodded, figuring after all this that Paul wouldn't be up for another battle today, anyway. "Right, Paul. I'll be looking forward to it!" She prayed he would be well again once that time came. But she felt she had worn out her welcome by now and watching a battle like that made her antsy to get a battle herself. She already had one with Ash, and Paul was not an option…

She looked to Zoey. "So, Zozo! I guess it's our turn next, right?"

"Huh…?" Zoey looked at her mentor, not sure what she was getting at. She didn't make any plans for today…

"A kiai battle with you and me," Candice challenged, smirking at her childhood friend. "Let's get going."

Zoey knew that look… Candice was definitely fired up, most likely after seeing that horrifying battle. It seemed the aftershock of the battle that just took place wore off on her rather quickly, changing into her own desire to have a good battle. Zoey smiled knowingly at Candice upon understanding her motives. "You bet, Miss Senior."

Candice's Dodrio was sent out again; the owner quickly seated herself upon it and pulled Zoey up with her. The spunky Gym Leader looked to the others, bidding them farewell.

"And much good luck with your next Contest, Dawn!" Candice expressed with sincerity.

Dawn smiled and nodded; it was relieving to think about her own goals again after what she just saw. "Thank you."

"Okay, everyone! See you around…!" Candice waved as she rode her Dodrio back towards the actual city limits, still saying her goodbyes and waving as she distanced herself from the group.

Zoey added in her own farewell, though she knew soon enough she'd be seeing Dawn again. "See you, Dawn…!"

"Bye-bye, Zoey! Good luck!" Dawn shouted back.

"Take care!" Ash added. At least he was enjoying the variety of company that had been around his core group since they arrived in Snowpoint City.

Paul… couldn't have cared less. Seeing almost everyone distracted with saying goodbye to Candice and Zoey left him with an opening to slip away as well. Paul wasn't sure where he actually intended to go at this moment, but he felt increasingly uncomfortable the longer he remained with the group in spite of it dwindling down.

_Almost_ everyone was distracted by bidding the girls farewell, but Paul couldn't escape Reggie's eyes no matter how hard he tried. While Reggie remained quiet the entire time, he had decided on what he would do for Paul to help him recover from the loss to Brandon.

Just as Paul thought he was in the clear, he heard Reggie call out to him, exposing his little scheme. "Hey, Paul!"

He didn't care, he didn't care…

"Do you think there's any chance you and Ash can treat us to a full battle at some point?"

He didn't-…

Paul froze in place, thankful that no one could see his eyes widening at such an idea. A full battle with Ash? Really…?

Ash too was surprised by Reggie's suggestion. "Me and Paul…?"

Brandon saw it fit to step in with his opinion, putting on a proud smile. "You two! Interesting idea."

Hearing his father's voice in an almost-friendly tone, Paul looked back to the others… but specifically at Brandon.

"Let's set the time and place and agree to meet again," Brandon decided. "That's bound to be a battle guaranteed to raise the level of both of you. Of that, there can be no doubt."

Way back when Brandon was still in Kanto, he fancied the idea of seeing such a battle. He wasn't sure if he would be able to see this particular one, but he was more than happy to support Reggie's idea. Reggie looked to Brandon with a smile, absolutely ecstatic inside that his father was actually supporting something he came up with for once. That… was a _very_ rare occurrence.

It didn't take much to convince Ash, as usual. "Yeah! Great, I'm in!"

Was this really a good idea? Paul wondered about that. He couldn't defeat a man Ash defeated already… Ash had been improving as a trainer over time and already technically scored a victory against Paul, though informally. If he could accomplish that much, it was already a very real possibility that Ash might possibly defeat Paul the next time they battled.

Still, his instincts and what shreds remained of his pride provided the answer for Paul regardless. "I'm in, too."

This was a perfect opportunity for Paul to put his concerns to the test. Of course he couldn't pass it up.

Brock found this interesting, but was curious about one important detail. "Reggie, what about the time and place?"

Reggie had already decided on that before saying a word in the first place. "Exactly ten days from now," he said. "At the Pokémon Center at Lake Acuity."

No doubt Reggie was psyched for this. He looked pumped up and ready to do it now, even, but obviously this was not the right time at all. In the meantime, during those ten days, he had his own plans for Paul.

"Then it's decided," Brandon approved. He looked to both Ash and Paul, nodding to both of them. "I can't make any promises as to whether or not I'll be there… but regardless, I expect the utmost effort from both of you."

"It's nothing but that when it comes to me!" Ash assured him, grinning. "Even if ya don't make it, we'll be sure to tell ya all about it when we're done."

Paul merely nodded to Brandon, still feeling as if he lacked the right to speak with him directly after what happened. Still, just by seeing Brandon acknowledge him again in a way that didn't insult him brought back those wonderful feelings he briefly felt when Brandon spoke to him directly.

But like last time, Paul wouldn't get to enjoy them for long. Reggie snagged Paul by the arm and made his way to the van, waving goodbye to everyone. "Guess we'd best get going to prepare, then," Reggie said to excuse himself. Partially that was true, but he felt that Paul really needed to be out of there as soon as possible. He didn't notice Paul calming down again, nor did he realize that Paul was beginning to look discontented as he was pulled away from those unfamiliar warm vibes… "First thing's first: the Pokémon Center."

Brandon nodded in agreement. "Make sure that young man's Pokémon are well taken care of. Hopefully I wasn't too hard on them."

Reggie forced out a smile as he ushered Paul into his van. "Ahah, Paul's a tough guy and so are his Pokémon. They'll definitely be ready in time for the battle. It's, uh… been good seeing you again, Brandon!"

Man, how awkward did that feel? Reggie was forcing out more than a smile by now; that's why he was glad to just about be out of there.

"The feeling is mutual, Reggie," Brandon assured with a nod. "Stay safe… both of you."

Something had been bugging Reggie in the back of his mind all this time, but he couldn't put a finger on it. He waved with haste as he seated himself within his van, giving one final wave before driving off.

"Will do!" Reggie called back. "Bye, everybody! See you in ten days…!"

And just like that, the brothers were gone. A huge weight was lifted from the shoulders of the entire family.

The Battle Pyramid quickly became a distant sight to Paul and Reggie as they swiftly made their way back to Snowpoint City. Both were quiet; Paul's reasons were obvious, though now finally having some amount of privacy allowed him to soften a bit as he huddled over; both arms wrapped around himself. Reggie, however… it finally came to him; that mysterious intangible thing bothering him mentally.

"Dad…"

Paul looked up at Reggie upon the mention of that man, though he looked absolutely miserable in doing so.

"I can't believe it…" Reggie muttered to himself. "Dad's been… he's been calling me by my name all day!" Reggie couldn't even remember the last time Brandon did that. Paul blinked a couple of times, finding it weird that Brandon actually did that in spite of Reggie not yet defeating him…

"It couldn't… it couldn't have been part of the plan, right?" Reggie wondered out loud again. He had temporarily forgotten that Paul was right next to him. "Because… that makes no sense. If I didn't surpass him, I didn't earn that right…"

Reggie's mind raced around the possible explanations for this, but he felt excited regardless. Thinking back on it, how nice it felt to actually be addressed as something other than a noncommittal "boy"…

"Maybe there's hope after all!" Reggie cried out with joy, but Paul honestly had no idea what Reggie was talking about. Still, for being a good sport and going out of his way to comply with Paul's somewhat-unreasonable wishes, Paul decided to remain quiet and let his brother bask in the warm and comforting feelings that may or may not have been similar to the ones Paul briefly experienced.

He deserved to be happy once in a while, Paul believed. The younger brother chose to bury himself under his misery in silence until they would reach their destination. Even with doubled-up medication, Paul still felt like a train ran over him. The only way to put his frustration in words would be…

What a day.

* * *

"It was really great seeing ya again, Brandon."

Brandon nodded to Ash. "Time certainly flies. Show no mercy in the Sinnoh League; I at least expect that much out of the few who are Frontier Brain material."

"They won't know what hit 'em," Ash assured with a grin. "Maybe next time we see each other and you're not busy, we can battle again?"

"Sounds splendid," Brandon conceded. "I was just wondering how well you'd fare in a full battle against me like the little troublemaker just had to."

"Funny you should say that; I was wonderin' the same thing," Ash admitted with a laugh. "Gotta admit that was a pretty intense battle. But I think I can definitely do better!"

Brandon looked to the sky; this had been fun, to say the least, but now it was time for the Pyramid King to face his own harsh reality of obtaining Regigigas at least. "It's a deal. I may even have something new in store for you the next time we cross paths. Surely we'll meet again somewhere in Kanto."

"In the meantime, we'd best hurry back to Snowpoint City and find out the best way to get to Lake Acuity," Brock advised. "Even without a blizzard, northern Sinnoh is no place to be wandering around aimlessly."

The group was about to go about their way, but Dawn gazed out into the distance and pointed in the direction of a sudden noise that gradually got louder over time. "Hey, did you guys hear that?"

Brock was perplexed as he quickly identified that sound. "A motor…"

"Perhaps Maria's come back to pick me up," Brandon assumed, but looked uncertain. "Though I made it clear that I would catch up with them… I never said anything about asking them to return..."

The louder the noise got, the more nervous the traveling trio became. "So, uh… are temple maidens supposed to be crazy drivers?" Ash asked, his voice shaking a little as the group eyed that familiar jeep plowing through the snow at what was surely a beyond legal speed.

Brock shook his head. "This can't be good…"

And it wasn't; Brandon didn't need to hear that much from Brock. He remained firm as the jeep finally screeched to a halt closer to the group; the others weren't quite as fearless. Almost immediately, Maria and Samuel stepped out of the jeep, both in quite a state of panic.

"Brandon!" Samuel shouted, clearly in despair.

"Something terrible has happened at the temple!" Maria finished for him, sounding worried sick about this horrible turn of events.

Terrible was a broad term… but what was certain, based on what he had heard from Maria already was that this almost definitely had something to do with Regigigas. Something was about to stop Brandon in his tracks and prevent him from reaching his goal before the moral controversy got the chance.

"Oh no…!"

Even Brandon couldn't act calm at a time like this.

What a day, indeed.

* * *

**( TBC )**


	16. Viva la Regilution!

**( Notes:**

**Whew, it's a relief to get this one off my back. That's not to say it was a total pain to adapt this episode (okay, maybe a little... if only because there was so much going on yet so little canonly described), but I am SO GLAD this one's out of the way. Like the previous chapter, this one is a near-full adaptation of _Pillars of Friendship!_ with various bits added in and mainly the Rocket gags being cut out. Don't worry... they'll actually have speaking parts once the full battle adaptation comes around. I figured this would take longer than usual to finish if only for the timing: the DP anime series ending, Best Wishes beginning, Black and White coming out (and yes, I'm being terrible and playing White via emulator before it gets released this spring in the states), new kitten, weather change = feeling like crap, etc. etc. So this took a glorious 2 1/2 months to finish (even though I didn't start this chapter until a little under a month ago). It was also a bit daunting since this is yet another chapter that features Paul only minimally and doesn't feature Conway at all (though he is mentioned frequently here), not to mention the first chapter that practically stars Brandon. Getting into his mindset is a different beast altogether. **

**Anyway, you may be pleased to know I have Trifecta plotted out timeline-wise to _chapter 32_, which will be the adaptation of the Paul vs Barry battle in the Sinnoh League. If I really wanted to, I could just lay out the plans for the rest of the series by this point because it pretty much writes itself. Thankfully, the Diamond & Pearl anime concluded Paul's character pretty much the way I hoped they would (big shocker that they confirm that Brandon is _still_ in Snowpoint 70 episodes after this adaptation that lands him into the commitment). So that was pretty nice. I've got the road pretty much totally paved for adapting all the way to the end of DP and lots of plots and set-ups are being put in place for the story once we hit post-League.**

**For stuff closer to the near future, I am very much looking forward to writing chapter 17. It'll give me a break from the adaptations (since 18's gonna be another one) and focus on what we all want to see: the dysfunctional family reunited again, and yes... next chapter will finally pick up on what Conway and Barry have been doing. But for now, enjoy what you've got, because like the previous adaptation, this adds a lot of details in that weren't made apparent on the show. It also triggers off some much-overdue plot points that will be focused on in the next chapter. And... oddly enough, this chapter marks the debut of Charon as well as J. Make what you will of that. Sorry this took so long coming out; hopefully that won't be the case next time! Enjoy the read! )  
**

* * *

Fresh off an easy victory after a scheduled grudge match with his son, Brandon (along with Ash and his two friends) was met up with a familiar jeep that sped across the plains in a panic. Stopping right in front of them was temple maiden Maria and Brandon's assistant, Samuel.

They alerted Brandon that a crisis was occurring at the Snowpoint Temple: the place where Brandon was finally to gain Regigigas after countless months of searching.

"What happened?" Ash asked, not one to be left out in incidents that had nothing to do with him, of course.

"Seems a mysterious group of people have sealed off the temple," Samuel reported. "There was no way to break through without being assaulted."

That piqued Dawn's curiosity, of course. "Mysterious people?" Of all the nasty characters she had witnessed since her journey began… she figured it could be anyone.

"Why would they do something like that?" Brock asked, unable to imagine why anyone would commandeer a very modest temple site.

The answer was obvious to Brandon… the why, that is; not the who. Still, he was hesitant to really go into detail with the children, especially since this was an issue that needed to be addressed immediately. This was no time for small talk. "Regardless, let's board the Battle Pyramid and head there right away," he decided. Naturally, he was addressing the adults in this group, which Ash and the others quickly took notice to.

Samuel agreed with a very formal "Sir!"; even though Brandon disliked most formalities, this was no time to nitpick.

"Please, Brandon, you gotta let the rest of us go with you!" Ash practically begged.

"Yes, please let us go!" Dawn and Brock followed up in unison. Brandon was rightfully apprehensive of letting these kids come along for what would be a very dangerous ride, but Brandon's dreams were about to end very soon if something wasn't done about this situation. He at least knew Ash and Brock were capable of putting up a fight, so they wouldn't necessarily be dead weight.

"Hm…" It was quite unfortunate timing for Reggie, Paul, Candice, and Zoey to leave the scene when they did. Their help combined would have been invaluable. For now, though, Brandon had to make do with what he had. "Alright, kids," Brandon conceded. "Let's get going!"

Everyone boarded the Battle Pyramid and it soon took flight, headed straight for the Snowpoint Temple. What they didn't know was that they had a certain trio of stragglers hanging on to the exterior plating of the pyramid, but the wind currents once the vessel was in flight were far too strong and eventually swept them all away to fall back to the earth below.

Brandon was making his prized facility go as fast as it possibly could; there was no doubt he was panicked, though he was excellent in masking it. The others couldn't believe how calm and collected he appeared to be. The Pyramid King was clearly focused, dead set on rectifying this situation. His goal was on the line… and quite possibly his job, too. He was sure to punish whoever threatened to take Regigigas away from him.

Ash gazed at the forest they passed through. This was all going way too fast for him, so he was curious as to what the panic was really all about. "I wonder what they're after…" Even to Ash, it seemed unusual that a suspicious group would pillage an old temple of all places.

Though Brandon was sure he knew the answer to the question he was about to ask, the Frontier Brain knew it was best to clarify things while the calm before the storm lasted. "Young man, you don't happen to know the legend of the Snowpoint Temple, do you?"

He still didn't really want to give these kids (or Maria) an idea of what his true intentions were, but Brandon was certain that they would be more useful as allies if they at least knew what was going on.

"No, I've never heard of it," Ash admitted, turning away from the window to face his former foe. "But I'd sure like to."

In spite of Brandon's hesitations, the unsuspecting Maria decided to tell the story for him. "Alright, then. It happened a long time ago," she recalled. Of course the maiden knew the legend by heart. "Once, after a volcano violently erupted, the Snowpoint Forest – rich in natural resources and beauty – was transformed into a sea of flowing lava."

This at least explained why there were so many clearings in the forest areas north of Snowpoint City.

"Then, out of a bright blue light, Regigigas appeared," Maria continued. While Brandon felt himself cringe, the children interrupted the temple maiden out of sheer surprise.

"Regigigas?"

"Correct," Maria affirmed, not at all minding the break in her story. "Along with Regice, Regirock, and Registeel. Together, the four of them halted the volcano's eruption, thus saving Snowpoint City from destruction."

The time of this alleged legendary miracle was never specified, but Maria guessed this to be right around the time Snowpoint City was founded a couple of centuries ago. Her generations and those past hers never knew Snowpoint Forest to be that magnificent, and none of them ever witnessed an active volcano during the course of their lives. But those generations past the shrine maiden knew well of this tale and passed it down all the way to the present generation.

"Later, Regigigas transformed itself into a stone of light and fell into a deep sleep, while in order to protect Regigigas, the legend says Regirock, Regice, and Registeel were transformed into the three guardian pillars made of the basic elements of the land: rock, ice, and steel," Maria continued.

"And their location is the Snowpoint Temple," Brandon finished with a heavy heart. It was difficult sharing this much information to a bunch of kids, but at least the Pyramid King knew they were on the up-and-up and wouldn't spill all of this across the world. He already heard this story from Maria yesterday afternoon, though the way she worded it made Brandon aware of a detail he had, up until now, been overlooking.

Let alone Regigigas being in the temple, according to Maria's legend, it was confirmed that there was a completely different set of the Regi trio in the exact same place, only now taking the form of pillars. This was quite a breakthrough and gave much credence to the theory that separate regions contain their own sets of legendary Pokémon that were usually regarded as one-of-a-kind.

"So what does that group of people have to do with it?" Ash finally asked.

Brandon's expressions hardened as he spoke the dreaded truth, and one of his greatest fears. "They're most likely after Regigigas."

The way Brandon expressed his belief hushed those who were in his company. These indeed were dark times suddenly coming upon the Pyramid King; he wasn't sure how he would feel if his petty grudge match with Paul actually prevented him from getting what he came to Sinnoh for in the first place. All those months… all the patience Brandon needed but honestly didn't have… all for nothing? That was completely unacceptable.

Samuel finally broke the silence the best way he knew how: focus on the technology he himself implemented into the airborne facility. "We're getting very close," he noted. "I'll put a view of the temple entrance onto the main monitor."

The Snowpoint Temple was now viewable to the entire entourage. An array of soldiers had the place surrounded, but something that caught the eye of everyone was the silver-haired woman approaching the temple directly all by herself. She clearly carried herself as a business woman. From various past experiences in the Sinnoh region, Ash and the others were very quick to recognize her.

"Look!" Dawn cried out with a gasp.

Ash glared at the screen. "Hey, it's Pokémon Hunter J!"

As a woman sheltered from the world, Maria was the only one who couldn't recognize her. "Who's Pokémon Hunter J…?" she asked, clueless as can be.

"Part of a group that steals Pokémon and sells them on the black market," Brandon answered; his tone stiff and stern. He couldn't recall directly dealing with any Pokémon hunters in his lifetime, but a worldly person like Brandon was very well aware of their existence. J herself had quite a reputation due to her past successes, so she was easy to identify.

Dawn was getting confused; the story she just heard from Maria was said to be a legend, yet Brandon seemed to think that legend was undeniably true without saying why. She felt the need to address this before preparing herself to deal with J again. "But Brandon, I thought you just told us that the sleeping Regigigas is just a legend, right?"

"Not so," Brandon shot back. He had studied into this particular "legend" long enough to tell whether or not it was legit. There was that and the fact that there was literally nothing else noteworthy in the Snowpoint Temple that would warrant a full-scale invasion such as this. "There has been sufficient evidence uncovered that shows it's not just a legend. That's why I came here."

That was the truth. Just from the trouble of finding the only factual book on Regigigas in the world… and the fact that there was _only_ one book left on Regigigas told Brandon that this was a legend trying to be covered up as much as possible because of the shoddy defenses that housed the four Regis. It was interesting, actually, as Brandon found his set of Regis in Kanto under completely difference circumstances. There was obviously no Regigigas to be seen and no evidence of its existence at any of the three locations where the other Regis were found. Brandon's Regirock, Registeel, and Regice had their own separate shrines located in the most remote locations of the Kanto region. The shrines were small and rather unnoticeable outdoors, but inside, it was the polar opposite. Small but pristine, the temples clearly reflected the element that made up their legendary host… as well as some mysterious wall markings that resembled the Braille language. Brandon had spent many days studying them and their relation to the golems.

It was difficult to say why, exactly, the Regis were presented so differently in Sinnoh and why there was no sign of Regigigas in Kanto. But these were questions that would have to find answers another day… regardless of origin, Brandon was determined to make Regigigas his.

"That's right," Ash suddenly realized. "That means they'll do whatever it takes to catch Regigigas, so we've gotta do something first!"

Brandon resisted rolling his eyes at Captain Obvious's revelations. Sometimes it was hard to believe this boy actually defeated him in battle… but Brandon had a feeling Ash would never stand a chance against him in a full battle with all of his Regis. Even more so whenever Brandon got Regigigas… he would no doubt be an even greater challenge than before. To Ash, Brandon simply nodded in agreement without saying anything.

No doubt this was going to be a long shot… but Brandon believed this was his time to shine in the face of adversity. If the stakes weren't so high, Brandon would have appreciated the challenge of facing a Pokémon hunter and her troops.

* * *

"Whoa…! It's the Battle Pyramid!"

Various soldiers took notice to the rumble and the sound of the Battle Pyramid well before it actually arrived on the scene. They stared up in the sky in awe, never expecting his magnificent vessel to be their adversary in a place like this.

"Someone report to J immediately!" another soldier cried out. Even with power in numbers, several soldiers dreaded to face the wrath of the Pyramid King. It was imperative that their boss be aware of the threat she would soon face, as she was traveling within the temple at that time.

Once J was notified, she fought hard to resist a scowl. "Brandon the Pyramid King…? This could be a problem," she admitted. Just as Brandon made himself familiar with famous villainous figures, Brandon's reputation was something a Pokémon hunter could not ignore. Given his secondary profession as an archaeologist, paranoia of running into him spread deeply across many of her henchmen whenever their mission involved a place he may be researching on his own. "Make sure you keep them at bay," J ordered her men through her communicator. She was too close to reaching her goal to turn around and fight now.

Even if this was a place that Brandon would be interested in, J assumed they were in the clear from at least that threat simply because they were in a different region. This was a most unpleasant surprise, indeed.

In accordance to J's orders, her henchmen sent out their arsenal of Pokémon meant to take down a strong opposing force. Swarms of Skarmory and Metang took to the skies, swiftly approaching the Battle Pyramid.

Within the targeted facility, Brandon and the others came face to face with an overwhelming amount of Pokémon ready to tear them down. In spite of this, there was really only one option in this scenario: endure the onslaught and keep going. There was no point in trying to get a large and cumbersome facility to dodge the Pokémon or their attacks. The Battle Pyramid was Brandon's pride and joy; Samuel's upgrades made it even more worthy of the Pyramid King's pride. He was confident his vessel would complete the journey… but that didn't prevent Brandon from being cautious. "Here they come. Hang on!"

This would be a rough ride no matter the end result.

The henchmen called for Flash Cannon from the Skarmory and Sludge Bomb from the Metang. These were hard-hitting attacks in their own right; from a massive number of Pokémon, unarmed targets would be killed on sight within seconds. Even with its impressive defenses, the Battle Pyramid was soon overwhelmed with the barrage of attacks. The army of Pokémon, experienced in taking various aircrafts down, knew where to clip the wings of anything airborne. For flying objects without wings, such as the Battle Pyramid, there was an obvious alternative and/or equivalent target: the propulsion system.

After a few rounds of direct hits from hundreds of Pokémon, one of the four main engines that ran the Battle Pyramid's propellers was completely trashed, as evident with the thick trails of smoke coming from the source. This left a very uneven distribution and everyone was thrown around as a result. This made steering nigh impossible, especially in light of the nonstop attacks that continued to batter the airborne facility.

"Sir, one of the motors is no longer functioning!" Samuel confirmed as he struggled to read what the display screen reported. "At this rate, we'll lose the rest within minutes…!"

Brandon didn't like to resort to this, but he was not about to lose his Battle Pyramid. They weren't far from the temple at all; of course the Frontier Brain knew to carry emergency vehicles within his facility just in case something like this happened. Losing control of the Battle Pyramid while being so close to the temple was another reason to abandon it: if the Battle Pyramid were to crash into the Snowpoint Temple, all really would be lost. Brandon would not have that weighing down his conscience; enough weight existed there stemming from his family issues alone. To the best of the Pyramid King's abilities, the Battle Pyramid was steered away from the Temple and towards the neighboring forest.

"HANG ON, EVERYONE!" Brandon shouted as the others were tossed and tumbled about. "EMERGENCY LANDING!"

It was a rough landing as the Battle Pyramid skid along the frigid forest floor for a few miles before finally grinding to a halt. Those inside were extremely fortunate to not be injured, as the turbulence and impact combined left most of them falling and stumbling along the floor while Brandon held onto the steering wheel for dear life. He could already smell the smoke emitting from the busted motor… this was by far the most damage the Battle Pyramid had ever taken.

This was where it was very useful for Brandon to have an assistant who was a mechanical whiz. The Pyramid King would have been utterly lost in this scenario. Even though it looked bad now, Brandon was certain that Samuel would be able to fix his facility and restore it to its former glory.

But all of that was still secondary compared to the matter at hand. The Battle Pyramid was useless at present, as Brandon begrudgingly accepted. He looked to the others after recovering from the impact. "Is everyone alright?"

Ash and the others affirmed that they were. Dangerous missions and crash-landings were nothing new to them. Like Brandon, though, Ash remained focused on the matter at hand. "The temple can't wait," he muttered. "So what now? It'll be too late by the time we run over there…"

"Hm…" Brandon had an idea, recalling his emergency supplies. He rarely ever needed them, but it was always best to come prepared. It was a pity a certain son of his never considered this philosophy to be vital to his life. "We'll use a mini-craft to the temple; there's one securely sealed within the cargo hold, so it should be usable," he decided. "While we do that, Sam will stay behind and repair the motor."

This was to be expected… not that Samuel was offended in the least. He knew he was most useful this way rather than being out on the battlefield. "Sir! I'll get on it right away."

"One surprise after another," Dawn mumbled. "This place really is something else…"

"Indeed," Brandon concurred. "But we must leave immediately. Regigigas must _not_ fall into J's hands."

Ash nodded, glaring at the idea of it. "I'm hearin' that. Let's go!"

Within a couple of minutes, the mini-craft took flight as it left its base. Ash, Brock, Dawn, and Maria looked on with concern as Brandon approached their destination at full speed. Just in case another attack occurred before reaching the temple, Ash and Dawn set Pikachu and Piplup to the sides of the aircraft to negate any attack coming their way. Getting hit in the mini-craft was _much_ more dangerous than getting hit in the Battle Pyramid, thus there was no room for error to be had.

"There they are!" one of J's henchmen shouted, pointing into the sky. The mini-craft didn't stick out like a sore thumb in the bright sky like its mother vessel did, so the group was well within reach of the temple before the blockade noticed their presence.

As always, they were quick to act. "Prepare for another attack!"

The ominous swarm of Skarmory and Metang started to surround the mini-craft, but now it was Ash and company's turn to take initiative and go on the offensive.

"Pikachu, Thunderbolt now…!" Ash commanded.

"Piplup, use Bubble Beam!" Dawn followed up. The combination of electricity and water proved to be a very useful combination when it came to getting rid of most threats… usually said threats were Team Rocket, but the combined attacks worked just as well against Pokémon owned by hardened henchmen. Skarmory was already weak to Electric-type attacks and the water from Bubble Beam amplified it. The years of experience Ash gained with Pikachu made the Mouse Pokémon able to handle almost any threat without too much trouble. Even Brandon could admit Ash's first Pokémon was quite a wondrous creature… it did manage to take down his Regice, after all.

After the group successfully blasted through the barrage, the mini-craft landed and everyone was quick to jump out. The henchmen were stunned to see their Pokémon fall one by one, but they still had their own manpower to make use of. Brandon knew there was no use in wasting time with them and led the group towards the temple.

"Let's go!" he commanded. Everyone agreed and followed his lead. Brandon couldn't believe he was so close… and yet so far.

It was at this time that Pokémon Hunter J reached the hidden chamber of the Snowpoint Temple; the dreary, stone-walled hovel that housed the legendary Pokémon she was hired to capture. J gazed at the sight before her as she approached it. She recognized the details of this landmark, given to her by her contractor.

"So these are the pillars that guard the sleeping Regigigas," she acknowledged out loud. Everything was matching up with what she was told. "Ice. Rock. Steel."

And presumably, if the legend was completely accurate, those pillars were once a Regi trio themselves. Their pillars were purely made of their respective element. Upon a pedestal nestled in the middle of the triad of pillars laid an orb of a fairly large size. Its color was blue as Maria said, but no glow emitted from it.

J also recognized this as the source of Regigigas, though even she wondered how such a gargantuan golem could come from a relatively small jewel. Nonetheless, she didn't have much room for skepticism; after all, everything else was matching up so far. "The only thing to do is destroy those pillars and awaken Regigigas," she decided. She took out a Pokéball and tossed it high into the air. "Salamence, let's go…!"

The wicked hunter knew destroying the pillars, thereby killing off this set of Regis, would have to invoke Regigigas' rage and force it out of its sleep. For such a cruel resort, J was completely professional about it. She was immune to the moral weight of her actions.

"We need to capture Regigigas," J told her Pokémon. "So use Hyper Beam, now!"

Salamence remained loyal without hesitation as it fired off a Hyper Beam attack directly at the ice pillar. From such a powerful Pokémon, the attack easily decimated the ice pillar and reduced it to rubble. One blast later, the rock pillar was met with the same fate.

Pleased with how smoothly this operation was going in spite of her concerns with potentially dealing with Brandon, J looked to the final pillar. "That's excellent," she complimented. "Now the steel pillar!"

"Stop this!"

Before the final line of defense could be obliterated, Brandon and the others finally reached the chamber after running a frantic marathon. They were all horrified to see what had already transpired prior to their arrival. It seemed as if it was too late already, but Brandon wouldn't give up that easily. This was where having a loud, booming voice came in handy; everyone, including J and Salamence, was startled by Brandon's command and it effectively halted Salamence's attack.

"Stop this at once!" Brandon reiterated. He glared daggers at J, not unlike the manner of which Paul glared at him during their battle earlier that day. Again, Brandon did well to withhold his emotions aside from the indignation; seeing the two destroyed pillars horrified him deep inside, as he quickly understood the severity of J's actions.

"So you got past all my men," J noted dryly. "I'd expect nothing less from the Pyramid King. Nonetheless, you're too late to stop me now."

Maria stepped forth, looking at the Pokémon hunter with pleading eyes. "You've got to understand, you mustn't awaken Regigigas!" she cried out. "The result would be disastrous!"

Brandon glanced at Maria (though she was too busy trying to beg J to stop to notice him – pointless as her attempt was), raising an eyebrow after hearing what she said. After all, when it came right down to it, Brandon's goal was not that different from J's. What would be done with Regigigas afterward was where their intentions differed, but the bottom line was that Maria's tone suggested that it was taboo to even awaken Regigigas at all. This was not something that crossed Brandon's mind before. Unfortunately, this was not the time to ask the temple maiden why exactly awakening the Colossal Pokémon would be a terrible thing to do.

"Hmph," J grumbled, ignoring Maria's warnings and turned back to face her Pokémon. "Salamence!" There was no need for her to say any more than that; her Pokémon knew what the hunter had in mind. Once more, it charged up energy to unleash Hyper Beam…

"Don't-…!" Ash cried out in desperation, but it was too little, too late. Hyper Beam went through the steel pillar like a hot knife through butter. It too was reduced to rubble, though being made of steel made it a little harder to crush into pieces like its rock and ice counterparts. Thus, a large chunk of the steel pillar came very close to collapsing on top of Ash, who evaded it at the last second. The others backed away as the dust and smoke kicked up by the debris faded away, revealing the large jewel said to contain Regigigas completely unguarded.

Ash couldn't believe this was happening. Then again, based on his previous experiences with the Pokémon hunter, it wasn't all that surprising. Every time Ash saw J, he realized the Team Rocket trio that stalked him on a near-daily basis were practically saints by comparison. Pokémon hunters were among the lowest of the low; the bottom of the barrel. What he was seeing here perfectly represented that. "J!" he called out to her, upset with the wanton destruction (and probably still startled by the fact that he was nearly crushed by debris of solid steel). "Do you know what you did?"

He honestly thought J had no idea what she was doing. Underestimating this woman was a grave mistake to make, however. Brandon knew better than to do such a thing; it was clear to him that J knew _exactly_ what she was doing.

Just then, in reaction to the three pillars being destroyed, the orb on the pedestal began to glow in a light blue hue, just as Maria described in the legend. The group (as well as J) braced themselves for some sort of devastating phenomenon.

"Uh-oh," Ash gulped, gaping at the glowing object. "This can't be good."

"Could Salamence's attack be waking up Regigigas…?" Maria wondered out loud.

Brock stared at the scene. His observational skills were kicking it into overdrive today considering what had happened before J showed up. "It's been rendered vulnerable," he pointed out. "Maybe it can sense that its guardians have been destroyed…"

That statement infuriated Brandon all the more as it became apparent that he was not the only one thinking about the consequences of destroying the pillars. It was needless to say that Brandon never would have resorted this, but now it was almost impossible to deny; the original Regirock, Registeel, and Regice of Sinnoh… were destroyed. A great deal of self-restraint was necessary for Brandon to prevent himself from outright attacking J then and there, but he did step forward as he witnessed J approaching the orb.

"I will _not_ allow you to go through with this!" he vowed. Especially now that J had destroyed Pokémon that hit close to home for him… Brandon was going to make sure she would live to regret her actions for the rest of her life.

J was no more than a couple of feet from the orb while the others were still a good distance away from her, mostly due to the debris that came between them. She just smirked at the famous Frontier Brain, filled with glee to have one-upped him. "All you can do now is stand and watch," she shot back. And she had a point… based on Maria's warnings, there was no telling what might happen if the stone orb was to be approached… and even then, J's Salamence was on standby to blast anyone who would dare to come near the Pokémon hunter or the orb.

However, as the moments passed, J realized that nothing was really happening. The orb continued to glow, but nothing more came of it. It must have been awakened to some degree… but not enough to bring it out of its resting place. J wasn't given any other pointers as to how to awaken Regigigas from her contractor, so she quickly became frustrated.

"What? Why won't it wake up?" J grumbled. It was just a matter of time before Brandon and the others would band together and attack her, so she had no desire to prolong this revival of the legendary golem. She looked to Salamence. "Quick, use Flamethrower!"

To attack the orb directly… that was _far_ too risky. Brandon's hold on his emotions finally broke as he shouted at the top of his lungs to somehow prevent this. "DON'T DO IT!"

It was nothing more than a waste of the Frontier Brain's breath. Salamence spat a stream of fire directly at the glowing orb. Much to the relief of the others, this attack seemed to not do any external damage. Nerves were again unsettled as the earth began to tremble and quake… within a temple like this, earthquakes and the like would be the death knell for anyone inside, as the temple was unstable and could easily cause a cave-in. It was minor for now, but all eyes were on the pedestal as a triangle of red light emitted from the ground, rising up from the points where the pillars once stood. As the light intensified and rose higher, J wisely decided to jump onto Salamence and back off from the scene, though she was pleased to see that her actions were finally bringing out the beast within.

The red light was almost blinding by this point, but eventually receded back into the ground. However, once the light faded, a massive titan stood before all those present in the Snowpoint Temple.

"No…! It's Regigigas!" Brandon exclaimed with horror. Never did he think he would _not_ be pleased to finally see the Pokémon he had sought for months, but something was very unsettling about the way it came into the world… and it was easy to see why. Finally facing the leader of the legendary golems was both amazing and horrifying, if only because of the circumstances Brandon was faced with.

Just as she did while watching Paul battle Brandon, Dawn once again brought out her Pokédex to identify a species she had never seen before.

"_Regigigas, the Colossal Pokémon. According to legend, Regigigas has towed continents using ropes."_

This was roughly what Brandon had gotten out of Professor Oak over a month ago. That only barely scratched the surface of what Regigigas was really all about. He would have felt privileged to be one of the few who knew the whole story now, but the fact remained that there was a crisis at hand and Brandon's mission was at stake as well.

To make matters worse, it appeared that Regigigas itself was consumed with rage… understandably so, given what had just happened, but this was one of the worst possible places for the legendary golem to vent its frustrations. However, rational thought was beyond Regigigas and it started blasting at the temple's ceilings regardless, causing more tremors that started to bring rocks falling down towards the unfortunate victims within the chamber.

"Regigigas, ya gotta stop!" Ash yelled at it, as if that was going to make a bit of difference. He always remained so naïve even after all these years. Regigigas ignored the young trainer and started to aim its blasts in random directions; the walls, the floor, and still the ceiling. This chamber was quickly becoming a danger zone. "STOP! STOP IT!" Ash cried out, but it was no use.

"Ash, it's not listening!" Dawn told him. "I don't think anything's going to snap Regigigas out of it now."

"Intense rage is making Regigigas go berserk!" Maria pointed out, terrified by what she was seeing. "I… I don't know how it could possibly be tamed; the legends have never portrayed Regigigas like this…"

This was when J finally saw it fit to make her move. With Regigigas out and distracted, to her it was practically begging to be snatched away. She aimed the cannon attached to her aim; this was the dreaded weapon designed to render living Pokémon as solid statues. It was a device Ash and the others were all too familiar with. Of course, as a typical villain's fallacy, J couldn't help but brag to those who opposed her.

"Well, you should thank me," J suggested in a tone of pure mockery. She readied her laser cannon and focused on Regigigas. "I'll preserve the rage that dwells deep inside of you forever!"

Even though it was consumed by anger, Regigigas heard that. It had the sense to turn straight towards J, which shocked her, and fired a blast right in her direction. To survive these dangerous scenarios, one would need light-speed reaction time to respond to these threats. J was fortunate enough to possess those skills, as she ordered her Salamence to counter the attack.

"Salamence, Dragon Pulse!"

Strong as J and her Pokémon were, they were no match for a legendary Pokémon. Regigigas' blast knocked the Pokémon hunter and her Salamence back, though they remained airborne. Begrudgingly, J had to admit to herself that this was a much more daunting task than it seemed. She would be sure her contractor would pay his end of the deal in full, if not more so for what she had to go through.

Once again, Regigigas blasted at the chamber's ceiling, and this time a full-blown cave-in was invoked. Several large rocks rained down upon the floor and everyone inside; they were very difficult to dodge. "If these attacks keep up, there's no doubt the temple will collapse!" Brandon shouted. This was a true living nightmare for the Pyramid King, indeed.

J understood that it was very unwise to remain in the temple for much longer, as the Colossal Pokémon's tantrums had officially compromised the structure of its home. It would be in shambles very soon… and J knew it would be much easier to capture Regigigas after it had fallen victim to the consequences of its own violent outbursts. "Retreat, now!" she ordered her Salamence, who quickly obeyed. J had the luxury of briskly escaping the chamber and the entire temple via her Dragon Pokémon. Everyone else, however… they were stuck having to foot it.

"We need to get out, too!" Brandon called out to the others as he watched J leave, scowling at the hunter for the travesty she caused. Just as the group attempted to leave, however, Regigigas blasted at the ceiling right over them, causing a massive avalanche of rocks that no doubt would crush and kill them all.

Again, this was where a fast reaction time was an essential. Brandon immediately threw out the Pokéballs containing his Regis for protection. "Let's go…!" he called out, not even having the time to shout his usual catchphrase, though ironically he needed their assistance now more than ever.

Regirock, Registeel, and Regice all protected the group and saved them from certain death. Once that wave of rocks ceased to fall, Brandon knew it was definitely time to get out of there. "That's it; out of here, quick!" he ordered his juniors. In a fast-paced disaster where one wrong move could lead to certain death, even Ash had no desire to protest and heeded the Frontier Brain's words, as did his friends and Maria.

Once Brandon was sure they were all at least out of the chamber, he turned around to face his trio of Regis. "Regirock, Regice, and Registeel: I need your protection until we get out," he requested. The hallways were a tad less treacherous than Regigigas' chamber, but it was evident the entire temple's structure was about to crumble completely. Brandon wanted to be sure that they all got out of there alive. The Regis perfectly understood their trainer's command and backed him and the others up as they frantically dashed for the temple's entrance. As the seconds passed, the road towards safety became increasingly deadly as Regigigas itself began to walk, making its way out of its chamber and slowly following the others while maintaining its consistent streams of destructive blasts.

J, of course, was the first one out of the Snowpoint Temple, relatively unscathed by the avalanche of rocks she and her Salamence had to dodge on the way out. She reconvened with her henchmen, all of which were quick to approach their boss as none of them had a clue of what was going on.

"Hunter J…!" one of them called out; most likely one of the higher-ups. "What is our next course of action?"

"Move to Point C and stand by," she ordered. J had gone a while without contacting her troops, so it was understandable why they were clueless right now. She looked back towards the temple she had just escaped from. "I'm going to check on our target once again."

"Yes, sir!" all of J's henchmen shouted in unison, saluting before relocating. J, meanwhile, took to the skies with her Salamence, but didn't go very far… in fact, she was still quite close to the temple (despite being well above it, therefore being in no danger for now). She situated herself in the perfect blind spot where no one would think to look… especially not during a crisis like this. She watched… and she waited.

J wouldn't be waiting long. Ash, Brandon, and the others could finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. They were so close to safety, but a blast from Regigigas straight in their direction was about to make their efforts all for naught. It tore through the hallway the group had just run through and was headed straight for them. Even with the three Regis bringing up the rear and therefore blocking most of what could be seen behind them, the impending blast was very hard to not notice, even for Ash. He screamed "LOOK OUT!" at the top of his lungs just as he and the others finally made it outside.

Had the Regi trio not been there to cover them from behind, they all would have been disintegrated by the blast. Instead, it was buffered by the three guardian golems and the shockwaves roughly knocked the group off their feet upon their exit, throwing them all onto the cold, hard ground below. The blast shot right out of the Snowpoint Temple's entrance, extending quite a few feet out before dissipating. The cause of the dissipation was none other than the temple itself, unable to withstand any more of Regigigas' abuse. Before the very eyes of Brandon and the others, the majority of the Snowpoint Temple collapsed within itself, barely leaving any semblance of a structure left…

… Only a very unattractive pile of rubble, which could have been considered a makeshift grave mark for Regigigas; the only one who remained in the temple upon its destruction.

A chill silence filled the area after all was said and done. It was quite the literal train wreck, so the group could do little more than look on at the tragedy that unfolded before them. Brandon didn't want to believe that this was the end.

"Where's Regigigas…?" Ash finally asked; evidently not wanting to believe the worst-case scenario just happened either.

"Buried under the rubble," Brandon bitterly replied. It hurt so much to admit that, and it was getting increasingly difficult for the Pyramid King to hide just how torn up he was over this entire situation. "Chances are… it didn't make it."

Brock nodded in agreement; being more of a realist than Ash and Dawn were, he could accept what was most likely Regigigas' tragic fate more easily than his friends. "Even a legendary Pokémon like Regigigas can't break free from something like that, even if it did survive."

"So then… you're saying…?" Dawn asked Brock; her voice shaking as she considered the implications. When Brock nodded back to her, the Coordinator held a mouth to her hand, trying to hold back on crying.

"What… will I do about this…?" a helpless Maria wondered out loud, prompting Brandon to look over to her. He couldn't help but feel guilty; even though his intentions were pure, there was no guarantee that Regigigas would have reacted any better if he were the one to have awakened it. "The temple… it's been reduced to nothing after all these years, and poor Regigigas… poor Regirock, Regice, and Registeel who looked over it…"

Brandon let out a sigh as he looked back to where the temple once stood. From what few details he could gather by looking at it now (obviously having no time to analyze it when he arrived), it was obvious that the temple had been standing for at least a thousand years; most likely more. It truly was a tragedy in more ways than one. Not only were innocent Pokémon's lives taken in the name of greed, but a piece of Sinnoh's history was demolished along with them. "There was no reason for any of this to happen," he said. "We will find a way to make it past this, Maria, but it's too early to resign ourselves to that. Pokémon Hunter J is still out there and probably nearby."

"There's got to be some way to get her apprehended," Brock murmured. "We can't let her continue to roam throughout Sinnoh committing these crimes… or else another place will end up like the Snowpoint Temple."

"I wish we could have gotten her arrested sooner," Dawn lamented. "It's not like we haven't had the opportunity before. I feel like this is our fault in a way…"

Maria vehemently shook her head. "No. Children, don't blame yourselves. You shouldn't be expected to apprehend such dangerous criminals; that's Officer Jenny's job, and I know they all must have been doing their best if this woman's reputation precedes her."

Oddly enough, Brandon could sympathize with Dawn… because he too was blaming himself for this partially. At least this mess was all J's doing, but the possibility of something like this happening if _he_ got ahold of Regigigas… Brandon wasn't sure if he could live with the guilt. Either way, this was looking worse for his future by the second. If nothing else, Brandon wanted that silver-haired, cold-hearted woman behind bars for what she had done. That would be the closest Brandon would ever get to atonement, he believed.

All of this was getting far too depressing for Ash to bear, however. He frowned and defiantly started walking over towards the site of the temple's remains. "You guys are really fine with thinkin' this is the end already?" he asked them angrily. "We're gonna get J – no doubt about it – but I'm not gonna give up on Regigigas just like that!"

Everyone was shocked at Ash's words… then again, he was always the stubborn one, often to a fault. "Boy, don't take another step further," Brandon warned. "We don't have time to waste on a lost cause."

"I can't believe you're just giving it up too, Brandon!" Ash shouted back. "Regigigas is the whole reason you came to Sinnoh, and you don't even wanna make sure it's alright?"

Brandon glared at Ash for what he insinuated. "That's not even remotely true; just get back over here and-…"

He was cut off by the ground suddenly starting to rumble… only faintly at first, but soon the tremors became quite violent, which was beginning to break off pieces of what little remained intact of the Snowpoint Temple. Ash froze in his place as he gazed at the giant pile of rubble – the source of the rumbling. And sure enough, quite abruptly, Regigigas erupted from the temple's remains… very much alive, and still full of rage as ever.

"No way…!" Dawn gasped. "It's alright after all!"

"Amazing," Maria commented, almost having fainted at the sight. "I thought nothing could have survived that…"

Brock's expressions remained grim, however. "Even so, it's still out of control," he reminded the women. "It's far too early to celebrate."

"Regigigas, _stop it!_" Ash screamed, once again in vain, as it went unheard by the Colossal Pokémon.

"Save your breath," Brandon sharply ordered. "You didn't get through to it the first time; don't expect it to work the fifth."

Harsh as Brandon was, Maria had to agree. "I am afraid no one is able to stop Regigigas now…" She feared for the temple, her home, and her own life… as well as the lives of others… were about to be lost to pure, unadulterated rage.

"Oh no," Dawn worried, shaking her head while keeping her distance. "We've got no choice but to stand here and watch Regigigas destroy everything, then?"

While Maria and the children worried about the imminent fates, Brandon approached his three Regis, all of which were at least still able to put up a fight and delay the inevitable long enough for him to think of _some_ sort of solution. A solution was already in mind… a very convenient one, at that.

"Regice, Regirock, and Registeel," he addressed his Pokémon, staring intently at them which told the trio all they needed to know without their trainer saying a word. They went off to approach their superior. Meanwhile, Ash went over to Brandon, wondering what the Frontier Brain had in mind.

"Whoa, Brandon, what are you doin'?" a very confused Ash inquired, though it was a fair question considering Brandon issued no verbal commands.

In a tight crisis like this, Brandon decided he might as well share his plan… the all too convenient solution to this problem. "I'm going to calm down that rage by catching it," he told Ash, which the others overheard. Maria especially was taken aback by this, but at the same time, she felt she had no room to protest. She had no alternative in mind, after all.

"Of course," Brock realized. "Many out-of-control Pokémon become tame once captured by a trainer," he recalled. This wasn't always true and Brock knew that, if Ash's Charizard was anything to go by. But Brock also remembered when Ash told him about the way he and Paul first encountered a wild and deadly Ursaring… which eventually came to be Paul's own. Brock often wondered how Paul managed to control Ursaring's violent nature all by himself, but he imagined being officially being marked as owned by a trainer domesticated it to a degree. Intelligent as Brock was, he wasn't quite certain of how the Pokéballs functioned in every way.

Nonetheless, he trusted Brandon knew what he was doing. He was the expert, after all. Brandon didn't really care what the others thought at this point because he was the only one with a good idea at this time. He gave his Regis the signal. "Unleash Hyper Beam, together!"

A triple-effort Hyper Beam was nothing to sneeze at… unless one was legendary. As it turned out, Regigigas had the power of three in of itself, easily countering the boosted Hyper Beam with its own. The equal levels of energy left neither side affected, but caused a large explosion nonetheless. Brandon aside, everyone else shrieked and backed away to avoid getting hit by any potential debris. But the Pyramid King remained firm in his stance. He was eager to finally achieve his goal, though he regretted having to do it this way.

He would worry about repaying the temple and Maria later; for now, he focused on his true mission. "Now, get up close and unleash your Focus Punch!"

In triangle formation, the golems approached Regigigas while charging Focus Punch. Before they could land their hit, however, Regigigas' fists glowed with its own energy as the hands came together, rose up, and brutally clubbed all three subordinates to the ground.

"It zapped the three of them in one hit!" Dawn exclaimed. "What power…!"

"This leaves no choice," Brandon decided. "Regirock, Registeel; hurry and hold down Regigigas!"

To already strive for the last resort concerned Brandon; he thought the _journey_ would be the hardest part of obtaining Regigigas. After catching three legendary Pokémon already, the Pyramid King thought he had this down by now. Evidently, he was sorely mistaken and that caused yet another inconvenience.

Regirock and Registeel emerged from the rubble they were buried under after that last hit and latched themselves to one arm each of Regigigas, effectively keeping it in one piece while Regice took its position.

"Regice, use Ice Beam!" Brandon commanded, valiant with his efforts as he strove to gain the one thing he wanted more than anything else. Ice Beam hit Regigigas directly as it could not dodge due to being apprehended by Regice's cohorts. However, this was considered a "last resort" for a reason. With Regirock and Registeel being stuck to hold Regigigas down, they too were frozen in a giant block of ice along with Regigigas.

But it was a small price to pay; Brandon knew Regirock and Registeel would be alright. The important thing to do was back Regigigas into a corner so it could finally join the family.

"You did it…!" Ash cheered, glad that something was working out here after all.

Brock nodded approvingly at Brandon's cunning work. "Amazing how you froze Regigigas along with Registeel _and_ Regirock, too."

Dawn had to admit this was pretty impressive. Her first impression of a Frontier Brain's power was quite overwhelming, to be honest. "It was a last-ditch strategy," she realized. "But it worked… and that's what matters."

While Brandon and the others thought they were finally making progress, J was watching these actions transpire the entire time. With glee, she waited for the perfect moment. It was close, but not quite there yet. "Keep it up," she murmured quietly to herself. "And as soon as Regigigas is exhausted from battling all of you, that's when Salamence and I will step right in and make our capture."

The Pokémon hunter was about to take away all of that precious hard work, and they had no idea it was coming. Regigigas was simply too big of an issue to ignore in favor of the renegade J.

However effective this move was, Regigigas was beginning to break free of its frozen prison as the ice began to crack. All but Brandon gasped in horror, but the Pyramid King knew better than to underestimate his future prize. Now that he knew he could land a dent on Regigigas, at least, Brandon found that there was a point in holding out hope to the very end this time; it really was paying off.

After Regigigas broke free, Brandon was quick to counteract. "Regice, Zap Cannon!"

As with what happened to Paul's Ursaring earlier that day, Regigigas took the full hit and was overcome with paralysis as a result.

"It felt that," Brock remarked, seeing the Colossal Pokémon was quickly wearing down now.

Even so, Brandon knew better to even give Regigigas a moment to rest. The odds were becoming heavily stacked in his favor all of a sudden as his other two Regis became available to attack again. "Registeel, use Iron Head!" he ordered. "And Regirock, Stone Edge!"

Registeel's powerful headbutt had enough force to knock Regigigas back, causing it to momentarily lose control of its balance. Regirock seized that small window of opportunity by pelting it with its powerful boulders, bringing the Colossal Pokémon to its knees.

This was it; Regigigas was vulnerable. This was what Brandon was waiting for; so many months, an arduous journey, the stakes stacked so high up due to the nature of his actions… it all came down to this.

He was finally ready to capture Regigigas, right here and now.

"And now to get you in this Pokéball…!" Brandon hollered, charging forth with an empty Pokéball in his hand. Just as he was about to make the perfect toss, the nightmare known as Pokémon Hunter J stormed in to crush his hopes and dreams into dust.

No Pokéball was thrown; Brandon suddenly _couldn't _throw. In the blink of an eye, Brandon 's arms were bound up behind him within a sticky yet sturdy substance. He was still standing, but it was awkward at best when Brandon was unable to move his arms. If he were to fall down, he wouldn't be getting back up.

It wasn't just him; Maria, Ash, and his friends were all suddenly captured within the same substance. With it coming out of nowhere, everyone was distracted and confused. This was a window of opportunity for J, who slowly descended towards the group on her Salamence while recalling the Pokémon that just halted the group in their tracks: Ariados. They had all become victims of its String Shot attack.

"It's J!" Ash exclaimed with a scowl. "Should've known you were gonna stick around…"

J simply smirked and approached her target. "Nice work," she congratulated mockingly, eager to usurp control of the situation from the hard-working Brandon. "_I'll_ be taking Regigigas."

"No way!" Ash barked back; he had seen what Brandon went through just to get this situation under control. At least with Brandon, he knew Regigigas would be safe under his control. The case would be the opposite with J getting her hands on the legendary golem. "That's not fair…!"

J casually aimed her laser cannon at Regigigas while closing in. "Such is life," she said quietly. "And now, for you…"

Even wasting a mere few seconds could ruin everything in this operation; apparently Brandon understood that better than J. All of a sudden, the dots on Regigigas' Braille-esque symbol flashed with a fierce, red light. The tables were turned once again.

"Oh no!" Brandon shouted, horrified as he recognized this technique. "That's Confuse Ray!"

That was exactly what _didn't_ need to happen; as a result of Regigigas using Confuse Ray, the dots on the symbols of Regirock, Regice, and Registeel also glowed red, signifying that they were now as uncontrollable as Regigigas itself. Feeling the pure rage mutually with Regigigas now, all four raised their arms up before J, who couldn't hazard a guess of what was going on.

"So _now_ what're they all doin'?" Ash cried out, who was also in the dark as usual. He knew this couldn't mean anything good, at least.

"What the…?" J was soon to find out first what was going to happen: the three enraged subordinate Regis took aim and fired directly at J: Registeel using Flash Cannon while Regirock and Regice used Zap Cannon.

Unarmed, taking all of those hits at once would likely kill a person. Thankfully for J, she had Salamence to buffer most of it, but both were knocked back considerably regardless. Even a mighty Salamence couldn't face an onslaught of this magnitude.

While J made some distance away to rethink her strategy, the Regis were quick to go on the move. In a straight line at first, the four angered Regis eventually formed a pattern as they walked down a dusty road beyond the temple: Regirock, Regice, and Registeel eventually settled into triangle formation while Regigigas brought up the rear.

"Oh, whoa! Look at that!" Dawn shouted, being the first to notice the odd pattern in their formation. Maria especially focused on the details of what was happening now… and then she realized this correlated perfectly with their recorded history.

"It's just like the legend," Maria muttered quietly. It just so happened that she and Brock were tied together; however quietly Maria spoke, Brock could hear every word and wondered what she was getting at.

"Huh? What are you talking about?" Brock asked her, purely innocent with his curiosity.

Maria looked on… she was sure of what she was saying. "Regirock, Regice, and Registeel have become the three pillars that will protect Regigigas. Just look at their formation; their movements…"

"Surrounding all sides of Regigigas," Dawn noted. "Because the original pillars are gone now…"

Pokémon Hunter J had no interest in the legend itself; only the bounty. After recollecting herself, she looked to her Salamence expectantly. "Now go to Point C so we can reconfigure our plan," she calmly requested, to which the Dragon Pokémon obliged. She returned to where she ordered her men to stand by, conveniently they were positioned so that they would eventually be blocking the Regis' progress along the road going across a mountain pass.

The Regis weren't just walking around like mindless zombies, either; they proved to be just as chaotic and destructive as their master as they all fired off random Hyper Beam blasts from their hands, decimating the landscape around them. It was obvious they couldn't be left like this.

Brandon was the most determined out of all those who remained. Even though his arms were still bound behind his back from the String Shot attack, that didn't stop him from making use of his legs, which remained to be free. It took great skill and balance to actually _run_ without falling with your arms tied behind your back, but thankfully Brandon had skill in spades. He caught up to the raging quartet; even more impressively, Brandon was able to adjust his arms and free them slightly from the web restraining him as he ran. Frequent struggling in motion loosened the bindings enough so that Brandon could regain some control of his arms and take advantage of the positioning of his hands, which were close to his pockets. From there, he was able to grasp the three Pokéballs belonging to his Regis.

"This has gone on long enough!" Brandon called out, actually making it ahead of the destructive Pokémon and standing right on the path they were taking, making himself a one-man roadblock. He aimed his three Pokéballs (which were very tricky to hold with only two hands with limited control) at the group. The Pyramid King knew this situation would be much more manageable if his own Regis were taken out of the equation. "Return, all of you!"

Three beams of light shot straight at Regirock, Regice, and Registeel with the intent of forcing them back within their Pokéballs… under normal circumstances, this would have worked. But just like Regigigas, neither Brandon's voice nor anyone else's could reach the other three Regis. His commands were useless now; they may as well be as feral as Regigigas itself.

Just to rub salt in the wound, Regice specifically aimed a Zap Cannon attack on its own trainer whilst the others continued about their wanton destruction. Even with limited mobility, Brandon still managed to dodge the attack… but only barely. The shockwaves of the explosion knocked him off his feet, causing concern from the others.

"No, Brandon…!" Ash shouted as he and the others ran over to their fallen senior as best they could, given their own conditions.

Thankfully, Brandon was fine and even managed to balance himself back on his feet, but he couldn't take his eyes off the foursome of Pokémon continuing their rampage while walking past him. Even when the others came to Brandon's aid, his attention was only focused on what he was losing to the massive golem he pursued for so long…

"Regirock! Regice! Registeel! Come back…!" Brandon called out in desperation. But he knew it wouldn't get through to them; Brandon was on the verge of losing it and had to let out that stress _somehow_ without worrying his companions. Brandon knew he was the one the others looked up to; he was undeniably the de facto leader of this operation. Luckily, Brandon had the leadership skills to spare… it had just been a long time since Brandon had last felt so distraught and helpless. The thought of not only failing to capture Regigigas, but losing the rest of his Regis in the process… that was unbearable, and on that virtue alone Brandon refused to give up.

As Dawn looked on at the scene, she realized something that made this travesty more severe and consequential over a hundredfold. "There's a town in that direction…"

Brock's expressions hardened as he realized Dawn spoke the truth. "If we don't stop them, it'll be a disaster," he understood. "So we can't just let this go."

Brandon was stuck in a sudden mental whirlpool, worried about what would happen if he were to fail. It wasn't just about him and his job now; several lives could be at stake, and Brandon stood a good chance to lose _all_ of his Regis… and they were like family to him. This was a rare instance where Brandon showed similar mannerisms to his firstborn son; both took it the hardest when it came to enduring devastating losses… such as family members. For once, the fear of losing more of his "family" had visibly stunned the Frontier Brain. He lost his wife far too soon and he might as well have considered his sons lost as well, given that he hardly ever spoke to them, much less visited. That was one reason of many why Brandon made a point to change that after seeing Reggie in the hospital one month ago… it made him realize he was well underway in losing what remained of his family. Brandon realized it was hard not to cling to his sons earlier today when they made a surprise appearance in this remote location of Sinnoh. He thought he had become desensitized to any kind of tragedy, but Brandon realized it now… running away from his problems was not the same as overcoming the fear of them. It was easy to appear aloof when Brandon didn't have to deal with his family on a daily basis… when he could do whatever he pleased and live his life to the fullest, utilizing his potential as best he could every single day.

The Pyramid King had nearly drowned himself in denial for years. Given Reggie and Paul's individual personal struggles… it was evident that denial ran deeply in the family.

"Brandon…?"

"Huh?" Brandon looked to who called out to him; Ash, of course. Ash wasn't used to seeing Brandon like this… he wanted to see the Brandon he was more familiar with.

"You sure ya didn't get hit?" Ash asked more quietly than he usually did; he was clearly concerned. A de facto leader's weakness was reflected in the worries of his comrades. "Or are you still thinkin' of a plan…? Y'know we don't have time ta' sit around…" His Pikachu agreed.

That was all Brandon needed to get himself back into reality; he would have time to mope over this later for certain. His firm, determined expression returned as he nodded to Ash. "It's obvious now that it would be too dangerous to pursue them on foot," he told the young trainer. "We'll have to return to the mini-craft and continue the chase there and keep them at bay somehow. Your Pokémon should be useful for what I have in mind," Brandon noted, but then glared down at the String Shot binding that still plagued him and the others. "But before we do _anything,_ we must find a way to break free from _this._"

"Believe me; I've been tryin'," Ash grumbled, trying to force himself out again like he'd attempted at least twice before, but the result was the same. "Anyone got any ideas…?"

Ash looked to the others. Brandon was already trying on his own as he quickly found a large, sharp rock to rub himself rub against in an attempt to snap his bindings apart with the friction (or at least have the rock tear into the web eventually). Brock and Maria were completely helpless to do much of anything as they were tied together.

That left Dawn, who looked down at her Piplup. "So… Piplup, do you think you can break through this String Shot and free us all?" she asked politely, knowing that buffing up her starter Pokémon's confidence would at least pump it up and strengthen the chances of this idea working.

Piplup was naturally more than happy to take on the challenge and quickly started to snap at Dawn's bindings with its beak… it proved to be very difficult to just snap in two like a string.

Dawn resisted the urge to sigh… somehow, she couldn't be that surprised that Piplup couldn't do the impossible… _agai__n_.

* * *

Elsewhere in the tundra of the Sinnoh region, Reggie and Paul were still on the road on their way back to Snowpoint City. After Reggie's sheer delight in being addressed to by name by Brandon died down to a steady, mild contentedness, there was a long period of awkward silence between the brothers. Reggie was glad he had thought to arrange this battle between Paul and Ash, but his plans in getting his little brother fully recovered from what happened earlier were still going by one step at a time. This was a delicate situation, no doubt; Reggie couldn't remember the last time he'd seen Paul this depressed. It was only a pity that Reggie had no idea there was much more turmoil in Paul's life than he could have possibly imagined.

This was the perfect time to let Reggie know the truth, but for various reasons, Paul could not bear to even bring the matter up. Even in his greatest moments of weakness, there was still a part of Paul that would stubbornly hold back. If Reggie even remotely had an idea of what was going on, he might have gotten Paul to crack. As it stood, however, Paul's miserable appearance really did seem it was brought on completely by Brandon's presence and victory.

But there was one thing that suddenly struck Reggie's mind out of nowhere; another topic Paul wanted to avoid.

"Oh my gosh, we completely forgot about Conway!" Reggie exclaimed, looking panicked as he struggled to not allow his emotions to affect his ability to drive. "He must be worried sick looking all over for you by now, Paul!"

While this was a topic Paul was dreading would come up one day… given the present alternatives, it suddenly felt a lot less daunting to admit to Reggie about the break-up rather than his terminal illness.

"No… he's not, Reggie," Paul quietly denied. Even if this was the lesser evil, he was in no mood to talk at that moment.

"What are you talking about? He must be!" Reggie countered, looking even more worried. "He's had to watch over you for a month and with you suddenly disappearing, why wouldn't he be looking around for you?"

Paul couldn't help but sigh; it seemed as if this was as long he would be able to put it off. "He's not looking for me because he _isn't here_, Reggie," he finally revealed. "Conway was never with me in Snowpoint City. We went our separate ways well before I made it up here."

"Huh…?" Reggie's voice was very hushed now; it was quite a shock to be told this. If Brandon hadn't shown up, Reggie would have found out that Paul was lying all along about Conway's whereabouts; his little brother turned out to be very poor at being convincing when telling anything but the truth. It was just Paul's good luck that Brandon's presence had Reggie completely thrown off track until now. Still, even if Reggie had suspected things weren't well between the two former friends, he thought that Conway would have at least held up his end of the bargain between them. "You made it up here by yourself, then," Reggie understood; that in of itself terrified him. "But why? What happened?"

"Don't blame Conway," Paul requested first and foremost. Even if Paul was still sour at Conway, he knew it was only fair to admit that in spite of what happened, the break-up was entirely his own doing. "I'm the one who left him; not the other way around."

It was then that Reggie saw it fit to pull over from the road and stop the van. The elder brother knew this was going to be a lot to take; Paul's nerves weren't the only ones rattled by today's events. Now that Reggie finally got Paul to talk, it was time to stop for a moment and take it all in… because he knew the circumstances must have been brutal if something like this happened. Once Paul realized they had stopped for this reason, he couldn't help feeling nervous all of a sudden. Of course Reggie wasn't going to take this well.

After another period of awkward silence, Reggie finally faced Paul, looking completely serious. "Why?"

The tone of Reggie's voice was indicative of one thing: he wasn't going to put up with Paul's usual nonsense. After so many controversial stunts Paul pulled over the years, he knew by now when not to mess around and blow Reggie off as he often did. The whole story would be required in order to properly explain his actions, and that's what Paul eventually decided to give: his recollection of the events preceding their breaking apart.

Unsurprisingly, there was a frown on Reggie's face once Paul had spoken his side of the story. It was by no means a happy story, nor something to even remotely approve of Paul's actions for, especially once Paul referred to Conway's breakdown as "bawling like a spoiled crybaby".

"You ought to be ashamed of yourself," Reggie darkly scolded. Paul was left a bit shaken and confused; he still thought his actions were justified. "Even after all this time, you're still so blind to the consequences of your actions…"

"What do you mean?" Paul asked, almost feeling hurt to his brother's reaction. "He's… he's an unreliable traitor. He was-…"

"He disappointed you," Reggie corrected; his tone sharp. "That isn't the same as turning against you."

Paul glared back at him. "He promised me! I made him promise to not give that book up so easily… he swore to it, and he not only nearly give it away like an _idiot_, but he still ended up handing it over even after he realized what was going on! It's just like how you lost against the old man years ago…"

"I didn't turn my back on you, Paul," Reggie argued. "Just because I lost to him doesn't mean…"

"You broke your promise, too," Paul cut him off. His expressions showed that he was in no sort of forgiving mood. "When you told me you wouldn't give up until you defeated him… put him in his place. We both wanted that after seeing how much he changed over the years, didn't we?"

It was difficult for Reggie to not flinch at those memories. "I… I know. I remember. And I'm sorry I couldn't follow through with that, but…"

"But _nothing_," Paul interrupted again. "I trusted you and you let me down. You _gave your word_ and then took it away just like that. You turned your back on me just like Conway did!"

That was it; Reggie was sick and tired of holding back on Paul. Even if he was clearly overly-sensitive from the fight, he still had enough bitterness in him to act this crude. Due to this, Reggie wanted to set things straight… he could deal with the irrational actions of his brother as long as he was the only target. When others came into the picture… Reggie was determined to not let them share his pain.

"Paul, that's _enough!_" Reggie shouted, efficiently shutting his brother up. "I was hoping you'd figure it out on your own, but I can't let you treat people so unfairly! Conway's your _friend_…"

"_Was_ my friend," Paul bitterly corrected. He seemed to no longer have a problem admitting that he did eventually see Conway as a friend… however briefly he understood that at last.

Reggie couldn't help suddenly grunting in frustration, but deep down he knew it wouldn't be easy to convince Paul of _anything_. "You've got to understand that we don't always fully understand our limitations," he urged, at least knowing Paul had a better chance of "getting it" if he got angry over this rather than downplaying everything as he usually did and plead with a smile on his face. "Back when I originally promised you, I didn't expect to be beaten so thoroughly by dad," he admitted. "And I didn't expect dad would show me why exactly I had no business being a trainer. I couldn't argue with him… if I had known of my own problems as a trainer before taking Brandon on… I wouldn't have made that promise, Paul."

Paul, of course, wasn't going to instantly take Reggie's words for granted. "You can't do that," he muttered. "You can't just… flippantly make promises like that and not follow up on them…"

"That's the point," Reggie emphasized. "I didn't make that promise without thinking it through… it was just something that never occurred to me, because I never focused that much on myself or my own needs… my whole world was _you_ back then, Paul. In many ways, it still is."

"What kind of excuse is this…?" Paul growled back.

"The truth," Reggie retorted. He was completely sure of himself. "The point is… we never know what will become of ourselves in the future. Even if you feel completely sure, something along the way is going to surprise you. Some… more than others," he begrudgingly admitted. "We never intended to break our promises… but tell me, how was Conway supposed to expect that he would be assaulted by this mysterious group of people? How was he to prepare for the event that his cousin wasn't as great as he thought when there was nothing until then that showed signs of it?"

While Paul was prepared for the scolding, he didn't expect to have to argue his case. The extent of which Reggie went to defend Conway was very unsettling for him. "That woman," he said with a hint of a growl in his voice. "Even after Conway saw that she wasn't up to any good, he still blew it. He admitted to letting that book go…"

"Given the circumstances, you shouldn't have been so harsh on him," Reggie told his brother; his expressions hardened after considering what really happened to Paul's companion. The evidence was more than enough to tell Reggie that Paul wasn't exaggerating that, at least. "He just had a near-death experience right after being kidnapped and… what I mean is… it's way too much for anyone to take in at once… even you."

Paul glared at Reggie after hearing that. "Don't excuse him for being weak!"

"We _all_ have our moments of weakness, Paul!" Reggie shouted back. "You had no right to judge Conway like that… much less abandon him when he _clearly_ needed your help."

"You really are taking his side…" Paul whispered, trying to hold in his anguish.

It was hard doing this, especially after what Paul had been through, but Reggie simply couldn't let Paul think he was in the right to dump Conway in such a cold-hearted manner. "So you don't know where he is, I imagine," the breeder realized, now worrying of Conway's whereabouts. "You left him all by himself on a dangerous route…"

"We weren't that far away from civilization," Paul clarified. "And Conway isn't like me; anything exciting or dangerous scares him to death, so he wouldn't have tried to pull any stunts like I have. He's probably back in Veilstone City by now; there's no way he'd want to stick around in a place like this."

"I'd feel better if we got some confirmation," Reggie admitted. "His mental state must be so clouded by now… we shouldn't make assumptions."

"That happened over a week ago," Paul reminded him. "If you're thinking of looking for him, forget it."

Reggie shook his head. "You're right; he could be anywhere if it's been that long ago. Still, if he really is back home, I'd like to think he's tried to visit me or Maylene… I'm going to give her a call when we reach the Pokémon Center. I've been meaning to anyway, since she's stuck running the daycare all by herself…"

The mere mention of Maylene made Paul roll his eyes. Even though he loathed talking about these subjects, it was an excellent way to get that devastating loss off his mind for a moment. "Keep it quick," he gruffly requested. "We have a lot of work ahead of us, don't we?"

"We do," Reggie affirmed, finally smiling a little. "That's another reason why I need to call Maylene… to let her know what's up. It's been days since we last had contact, so she's probably worrying about me. Once we're done with that, you'd best prepare yourself for some intense training, bro."

"For the full ten days, I assume," Paul figured. "But you're still rusty… are you really the ideal training partner for me, Reggie?"

To that, Reggie smirked. "You'll just have to see. Until then, we-..."

Words ceased to come out of Reggie, yet his mouth continued to hang open as his eyes widened. Paul was quick to notice the change in his brother's demeanor, but couldn't see anything ahead of them that would frighten his brother like this. "What's wrong?" he asked; unease being present in his tone.

"Behind us…" Reggie uttered breathlessly as he pointed at the rearview mirror. When Paul followed his brother's gaze, his own mouth hung open as he caught sight of what horrified Reggie.

It was none other than a dark, thick trail of smoke billowing high up with the below-freezing breezes into the sky. There was quite a bit of distance between the van and the presumed site of the source of the smoke. Despite that, it was huge and very noticeable, especially in the clear and bright daylight sky where the black smoke contrasted. As the smoke towered higher and higher over the northern Sinnoh region, theories of this oddity blazed past Reggie's mind.

However, it was apparent that it couldn't have been anything normal and likely wasn't anything to just brush off. The Valhalla Plains past Snowpoint City were rather barren and devoid of any form of civilization aside from the Snowpoint Temple… and even then, the only permanent residents there were Maria and the Regis she spent her life watching over.

"Reggie," Paul suddenly whispered, looking intently at the trail of smoke. "It's hard to tell, but… isn't that coming from around the area we just left?"

Just like that, Reggie was terrified and overwhelmed with worries upon hearing that he and Paul were on the same wavelength, which only made his reasons to be concerned more credible. "I think you're right," Reggie said with a small gulp following. "And aside from the Snowpoint Temple and the Battle Pyramid, there's really nothing up that way that would warrant all of that-…"

"The Battle Pyramid!" Paul suddenly realized. "Maybe… something happened to it…?"

That's all the reason Reggie needed to turn his van right around and immediately speed off in the direction towards the massive pillar of smoke. Paul was shocked momentarily as the movements from the van swinging back into the direction they came from and Reggie flooring it afterward.

"If something _did_ happen, we're going to find out," Reggie grunted, looking very determined now; partially to hide away his overwhelming feelings of paranoia if only for his brother's sake. "Dad… might need our help. If he does, we're not going to let him down the way he did to _us_."

Paul was not about to argue with him. He didn't want to vocalize it, but even though Brandon had just publicly humiliated him in battle, Paul was immensely concerned for his father's wellbeing. He hadn't forgotten those strange, yet-to-be-explained feelings of warmth and comfort that came with Brandon genuinely paying attention to him after their battle. The massive amount of effort Brandon put forth in conveying his constructive criticism was felt by his son. Paul didn't know what to make of it, but now his feelings for Brandon were more mixed than ever.

Right now, though… this wasn't the time to reflect; this was the time to act. Paul was determined to do whatever it took to ensure Brandon's safety, even if he would never admit that.

* * *

"We gotta… stop Regigigas and do it now!"

Back at what was once the Snowpoint Temple, Brandon and the others continued to struggle to break free from the String Shot bindings that imprisoned their arms. Brandon steadily worked on trying to break the web substance by rubbing it against a rock, but he was finding that whatever String Shot was made of was much tougher than any ordinary web. His progress was steady, but slow… and "slow" just wasn't acceptable during a crisis like this.

Ash continued trying to use his own brute strength to break himself and Pikachu out of their bindings, screaming things that firmly labeled him as Captain Obvious while doing so as if that would make a difference. Unsurprisingly, it didn't. Try as Piplup did, it was unable to snap apart the sticky, gooey strings that held its poor trainer in place. Dawn remained patient, but she was doubtful that she would be freed anytime soon.

Brock and Maria watched on; both unable to do much given that they were both tied together, limiting their desperation options for breaking out. As Brock watched everyone's efforts and focused on Piplup especially, however, an ingenious idea struck him. But he would have to be crafty in order for it to work… the Top Breeder-hopeful knew exactly what to do.

"Though still, if I must be tied up, it's great to be tied up with _you!_" Brock sung out, sounding dumb love struck as he often did whenever he was near a young woman. For this eccentricity to come out of nowhere during a very serious crisis, everyone's eyes were glued to Brock as the clueless Maria stared at him as best she could, a bit thankful that they were tied back-to-back right now rather than the alternative.

Dawn was especially exasperated at this inappropriate break in the drama. "Brock may be a genius, but his timing can be the pits," she muttered.

"Just hear me out, sweet Maria!" Brock begged, sounding especially desperate with his sing-song voice.

Maria… had no idea how to address this at all. "Huh…?" She wondered if perhaps she was even more sheltered from the world than she initially thought.

"The web of love that intertwines our romantic fate will stay tight and taut and never come undone…" Brock stated, as if he were reciting a poem from the generic book for helping desperate single losers. It was cheesy and easily grated Brandon's nerves, but before he even had the opportunity to shut the teenager up, a beam of light emitted through the web tangling up Brock's end. The sound accompanying it was very familiar: a Pokéball unleashing a Pokémon. In this case, it was none other than Brock's trusty Croagunk; one of the few Pokémon who regularly let itself in and out of its Pokéball without its trainer having to do a thing.

Croagunk was out to do its daily duty… for the second time today; give Brock a good, swift Poison Jab to restrain him and his desperation for love.

What surprised the others was that Croagunk's Poison Jab was the key to breaking a String Shot prison. Brock and Maria's bindings were shredded apart, effectively freeing the two and allowing Brock to fall flat on his face.

"Not without a little coaxing," Brock continued, sounding strained from the pain and paralysis that came with taking a direct Poison Jab attack. Landing on his face on the ground probably didn't help, either. "Which Croagunk's so good at…"

Goofy and absurd at Brock could be at times, Brandon had to commend the young man for finally finding a way to break free; by thinking out of the box, no less. "Brilliant ploy!"

"Yeah, good thinkin', Brocko!" Ash congratulated. He was elated to see that all hope was not lost yet. It was times like this that made Ash quite thankful to have Brock available at his side for all these years.

Dawn could only smile and chuckle awkwardly at the sight. It wasn't every day that Brock's skirt-chasing ways would actually benefit the group, after all.

With the matter of the String Shot trap finally behind them, the group could re-board the mini-craft and continue their pursuit of the Regis by air. Though they'd still have to worry about dodging any wayward Hyper Beams or other attacks from the legendary golems, they were still far safer in their position above the Regis instead of below them.

Brandon decided to check up on how things were going in his home vessel and used the communication system in the mini-craft to contact his assistant. "What's the Battle Pyramid's status?" Brandon asked Samuel, hoping his facility wasn't beyond repair. Not only would it damage his pride, but it would indefinitely damage his job.

"I'll need a little more time to get it fully repaired," Samuel replied; the feedback was very low-quality, indicating that he indeed wasn't quite near fixing the Battle Pyramid's damages yet. Brandon accepted this; he was simply thankful that the Battle Pyramid would make a comeback after all.

However, he intended to make every bit of use out of the help he had, including Samuel himself. "We're going to catch up to Regigigas by air," Brandon informed him. "Meanwhile, you get in touch with Officer Jenny and advise her to be on the alert."

These were precautionary measures for the town the Regis were headed for. In the event that Brandon and the others couldn't stop them from reaching civilization, it was direly important that the citizens become aware of any impending threat to their home.

"Sir!" Samuel understood his task very well. He too worried of what would come from this situation, as he never imagined it coming out quite like this. It was quite an extraordinary event… Samuel couldn't help but wonder if Scott and the rest of Kanto's Battle Frontier would believe this story whether or not Regigigas would be successfully captured.

"While he does that, let's do what we can to stop Regigigas in the others before they start _really_ causing problems," Brandon told the others, to which there was no objection. He looked to Ash and Dawn. "Kids, get your Pokémon ready… it's a sure bet we'll need to defend ourselves regardless of who our opponent is." That was just another way of saying that they needed to prepare to defend against the Regis as well as J, who was still lurking around out there and likely awaiting them already.

Pokémon Hunter J herself, meanwhile, watched and waited with her troops at their assigned rendezvous point. Hearing the uncontrollable destruction on the horizon, J's men were alert. J's airship deactivated its cloaking device, only using it so as not to attract attention while waiting. Now it was time to use all power reserves for offense only; J knew there would be no other way to capture Regigigas otherwise.

"Master J, we're ready to attack on command," one of J's henchmen informed her. "The target will arrive shortly; is there anything specific we should do in regards to capturing that Pokémon and dealing with its cohorts?"

"Yes, as a matter of fact," J coldly replied; her real attention was only on her bounty. "Fire at the ground right beneath them when they appear." Her eyes narrowed. "_Do not_ damage the merchandise no matter what."

"Sir!" J's henchmen were good about following their orders precisely as they could. However, managing to pull this off without directly damaging Regigigas would be very tricky and extremely risky… but everyone had faith that J knew exactly what she was doing. This time, she really did.

Two giant explosions on each side of the rocky cliffs creating a natural wall along the road J's troops were on (as well as debris from the rocks and dirt collapsing afterwards) signified the arrival of Regigigas and company. J looked up sharply and saw her prey approaching straight towards her.

Within J's airship, the henchmen operating it could zoom in on their opponents from afar to see important details early. "Target confirmed," one said. "Regigigas and its subordinates are headed straight our way with no further interference in sight."

"Excellent," J said to herself quietly. "So those pests may have been dealt with… then I can wrap this up quickly and collect the bounty." She looked to her men. "On my signal! Aim…"

It was all a matter of timing now. Once the destructive group of four legends came just within the ideal distance of J and her troops, she thrust her arm forward towards her target. "And fire…!"

All designated teams opened fire at the Regis, not caring to hit any of the three protecting Regigigas. As they were considerably smaller than their superior, the matter of taking them out of the equation along with aiming for the ground worked out conveniently. As expected, the three moving pillars retaliated and opened fire on their attackers all at once, aiming upwards towards J's airship. The ship's blast collided with the Regis' combined efforts and resulted in a massive explosion. As a side-effect, the type of blast that was fired at the Regis spread into multiple smaller laser beams that showered over the Regis and blasted through the ground, loosening it.

With Regigigas being so much heavier than its subordinates, its weight made the ground collapse around its feet, effectively implanting the Colossal Pokémon and rendering it immobile.

Seeing things going according to plan now, J moved on to the next phase of her plan. "Alright, liquid adhesive! Fire…!"

From J's airship, a bright pink ball was fired straight at Regigigas. The blob promptly splattered all over Regigigas, who was still struggling to break free from the ground. One of its arms was close to the ground at that time, where a large amount of the liquid adhesive sprayed. As a result, Regigigas could no longer move it, making the left arm the only usable limb… and even then, Regigigas was held down so tightly that it was difficult to make much use of its limited movement. The liquid adhesive's color quickly bleached out to white, signifying that it had dried.

At that time, the Braille-like signs on Regirock, Regice, and Registeel blinked red briefly before fading back to normal, signifying that Confuse Ray had worn off. All three were now back to their usual selves. However, this meant nothing to J other than the fact that it would be even easier to capture her prey if the three golems were no longer destructive and unpredictable.

"Regigigas can no longer move," J acknowledged as she watched on, seeing the Colossal Pokémon's struggles growing gradually weaker. The liquid adhesive would not let up no matter what. However, it managed to make use of its one free arm as Regigigas struggled to raise it, using the last of its energy to fire a Hyper Beam directly at J's airship. It was a critical hit that severely damaging the aircraft, much to J's annoyance.

"Hyper Beam hit us!" shouted one of J's men from inside the ship; J overheard this through her communicator. "Hard to stay airborne…!"

"Get out of Regigigas' firing range," J ordered over the communicator. She no longer needed her airship for this operation anyway now that Regigigas was stuck in one place. The vessel managed to ascend safely out of range, as Regigigas barely had any strength left to resist its restraints, much less try to fire off another attack.

This was the moment J had been waiting for. She was sure she had seen all there was to see from this Pokémon. "Now prepare to capture Regigigas!" she ordered, raising her voice to indicate that this was the critical moment; there was little to no room for error to be had here.

"Yes sir!" all of her henchmen shouted. They took their positions while J and her Salamence flew straight towards the golems.

Though Regigigas was spent, the others weren't entirely helpless. Even though Regigigas had forced them all to go berserk and destroy everything in their sight, they still felt the inherent need to protect their superior. J paid no mind to them, as Regigigas was such a huge target that it would be an easy shot to hit even with three guardians.

J aimed her petrifying laser cannon straight at her target. "Try this!" she said with glee, finally able to fire at her bounty.

Even if Regigigas had run out of surprises to bombard everyone with, there was still something that unexpectedly got in J's way: the other three Regis. Regirock went out of its way to take the blast for Regigigas, becoming the lifeless statue instead.

It was at this point that Brandon, Ash and the others finally arrived on the scene in the mini-craft. They arrived far too late to interfere, and so Brandon had no choice but to watch the first legendary Pokémon he ever captured become captive to J's wicked methods. "Regirock, _no!_"

Now that the aforementioned "pests" had _not_ been dealt with as J had hoped, the Pokémon Hunter quickly grew frustrated as she took aim at Regigigas again, cursing its subordinates. "Get out of my way!" she muttered with a growl, firing another shot with her laser canon. This time, it was Registeel who took the dive – quite literally – by jumping straight into the beam's direction and following Regirock's example before crashing into the ground with a loud thud. Thankfully, it fell from a relatively short distance from the ground, hence did not suffer any irreparable damage upon impact.

However, that made Brandon no less upset as he drove the mini-craft very close to the scene, watching his Registeel fall to the ground. Though Brandon knew of Pokémon Hunter J, he was not that familiar with her methods, much less the technology behind it. He wasn't even aware that this effect could be reversed, but only in a very specific way. From Brandon's point of view, he was certain he had lost Regirock and Registeel forever.

"Look what's happened to Registeel…!" Dawn cried in horror. This truly was unpleasant for anyone to witness, even if they didn't own the victimized Pokémon.

Ash was furious. "That's enough, Hunter J!" he shouted to her, though as usual this did nothing to help their situation. "Stop it!"

"I don't think so," J smugly shot back, taking aim once more. She admittedly did enjoy seeing the ones who slowed her down this much being helpless and distraught while she had full control of what was going on. She fired another petrifying beam from her laser cannon, but unsurprisingly, Regice jumped up to take the hit itself like its brethren. Just like that, all three of Brandon's Regis had become lifeless, helpless statues in a cluster on the hard ground.

"And now Regice!" Dawn exclaimed in pure horror. She hated how helpless they were to stop this from happening…

Ash looked on at the scene, understanding at least what went down just then. "Whoa… they did what they did so they could save Regigigas…"

Brandon very well knew that already. It was a noble sacrifice, but he was still overcome with despair. He couldn't even bear to look at the scene… had he known that it could end up like this, the Pyramid King would have had second thoughts about coming to Sinnoh to begin with. It had taken a lot of courage and persistence to last this long and keep himself professional without his emotions getting in the way, but now it was just too much. Brandon felt himself so close to having a nervous breakdown, which he hadn't had since the day his wife died, and because of that he was thankful for Dawn speaking up and getting his attention.

"Look at Regigigas now!" she shouted, pointing down towards the scene.

Brandon snapped out of it and followed Dawn's gaze. "Huh…?"

Even though Regigigas was completely helpless, out of energy, and out of protectors, the Colossal Pokémon had paid attention to the sacrifices Regirock, Registeel, and Regice made to ensure its safety. Such noble and selfless acts struck Regigigas deep inside, effectively snapping its mind free of the rage that controlled it and caused all of the destruction. This was reflected in the dotted mark on Regigigas, which flashed red briefly and then faded away. Just like its subordinates, Regigigas was no longer consumed with rage.

"Regigigas is getting less angry," Maria noted, sounding relieved even though they were still in dire straits. "It's regaining its self-control…"

Brandon stared hard at Regigigas now; it was hard to believe, but it seemed both were on the same wavelength now. He could see why Regigigas was finally calming down; however upset it was, the legendary golem could not simply ignore the numerous sacrifices made for the sake of its safety.

He understood why his Regis forfeited their lives now. It was all so very clear… it wasn't just because they wanted to protect Regigigas; it was also because they knew how badly Brandon, their trainer, wanted this Pokémon. The long and arduous months Brandon spent trying to find any sign of Regigigas, the sacrifices Brandon had made and the numerous risks he took that could have potential long-term effects … Regirock, Registeel, and Regice were aware of all of this. They wanted Regigigas in the family just as much as Brandon did. They showed their devotion to both Brandon and Regigigas by doing whatever it took to make sure Brandon still had a shot at his goal.

"So… your true intentions are clear to me now…"

It was touching, yet painful at the same time because Brandon was unable to properly repay them or reward their efforts. There wasn't even a guarantee that he would be able to capture Regigigas even if J could be defeated. And now all of this came at the cost of the precious Regis he had… it seemed this story was destined to have no happy ending. With no Regigigas, Brandon wouldn't be able to follow up on his promise to his sons, either. He felt that would be the point where they would finally cut ties with him for good.

He'd have no Regigigas to show the Battle Frontier committee… so Brandon stood a good chance of losing his job. It seemed at this point that Brandon really had no more to lose. He hated just standing here and watching this; he couldn't bear to see Regigigas to fall to the same tragic fate as the others.

But he did have faith in Ash and the others… if they had prior experience with J, Brandon knew they would find some way to take her down without needing his help. After failing this much, Brandon felt there was only one way he could make himself useful. Though normally a rational and down-to-earth man, Brandon had undergone too much emotional turmoil that he mostly withheld while keeping company with the others. But now, all of that restraint backfired. To prevent a breakdown, Brandon's flighty instincts kicked in at that very moment.

"Regice… Regirock… Registeel…"

Brock overheard Brandon's murmurs as he wondered to himself how Brandon was handling this situation. "Huh…? What is it, Brandon?"

With the opposition stunned, J swooped in within a mere ten feet or so from Regigigas to take her bounty here and now. "I'm afraid it's all over," she gloated, aiming her laser cannon for what she hoped would be the last time…

That was the moment Brandon's reckless instincts kicked in. He abandoned his pilot's seat abruptly, startling the others while climbing onto one side of the mini-craft. He at least had the foresight to give one final instruction to his allies before taking action on his own. "Alright, young man! Take the controls!"

Ash and the others were stunned at this sudden turn of events. Brock quickly realized Brandon was referring to _him_ and rushed over to Brandon's seat to pilot the mini-craft before it lost control.

This was unreal; it was easy to see what Brandon had in mind, and even Ash thought this was going way too far. "But Brandon…!" he urged, flabbergasted at seeing such a serious and straightforward man about to do something completely insane.

However, it was too late to talk Brandon out of it. Just as J fired the laser beam towards Regigigas, Brandon leaped off of the mini-craft and fell right into the line of fire, hollering out as loudly as he could.

That would be the last sound to be heard from Brandon. He fell straight into the laser beam just before it hit Regigigas and inadvertently made history…

… Brandon would be the first _human_ to ever fall victim to J's petrifying laser cannon. It worked on a human just like it did a Pokémon; the Pyramid Kind was transformed into a lifeless bronze-colored statue. Afterwards, the petrified Frontier Brain proceeded to plummet towards the ground from a much greater height than which his Regis merely jumped. It really was a suicide dive, as Brandon would not have survived the fall regardless of whether or not he was a lifeless statue. However, it was Regigigas who made the save, reaching over to let Brandon land safely in the palm of its hand.

Still, even if Brandon was saved from falling to his death, his life was still in jeopardy. Even Ash and his friends had never seen _humans_ blasted by Jay's laser cannon, therefore they had no idea if a human would be able to handle the effects.

"Oh no! BRANDON!" Ash cried out at the top of his lungs. He hated how even he was aware that he was utterly helpless to do anything about this. His hatred for J grew even stronger as he glared at her. "How _could_ you…"

As Regigigas stared at the statue – the human who saved its life – its marks emitted a calm and soft blue light; a stark contrast to the bold and bright red. It had never been protected by a human quite like this… so far, Regigigas' impression of humans was a rather bad one thanks to J. But what the Colossal Pokémon held was solid proof that humans were capable of being just as noble as Pokémon. Brandon essentially threw his life away for this creature's sake… and now that Regigigas was no longer consumed with fury, it could clearly understand this.

Still, the revelation couldn't have come at a worse time. J was still right there in front of Regigigas, aiming her laser cannon once more. The onslaught of interruptions deeply annoyed her, but her persistence outlasted the determination to be free of most her bounties.

"Regigigas…!" Maria cried out. "There's nothing left to protect it!"

J tried so hard to not growl in frustration. "Meddlesome fools," she cursed. "But it's over now!"

"It's up to us now," Brock told the others, steering the mini-craft towards the danger zone. "Brandon had you guys prep Pikachu and Piplup for a reason…" He looked towards Ash and Dawn specifically. "We're the last line of defense, so let's do this for Brandon and the others!"

Ash nodded, looking to Pikachu, who understood the gesture and took its position on one side of the mini-craft. Piplup followed suit, taking the opposite side.

"We gotta stop her," Ash understood. "No matter what! We've gotta be brave!"

"Brandon's sacrifice can't be in vain," Dawn added, looking determined. "So let's do it!"

Just before J could fire yet another petrifying beam, the mini-craft promptly zoomed right over to where she aimed. They reacted quickly before J would fire off a shot regardless.

Simultaneously, Ash and Dawn issued their commands.

"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!"

"Piplup, use Bubble Beam!"

Before retaliating, J distanced herself from the group with Salamence. Afterwards, Salamence fired off a Dragon Pulse attack to combat Pikachu and Piplup's combined efforts. The attacks collided, naturally resulting in an explosion. However, Salamence's Dragon Pulse proved to be a vastly superior attack due to the seasoned Dragon Pokémon's strength and broke through the barrage – coming right at the unarmed group in the mini-craft. There was no way to evade taking damage and the others were terrified as they braced theirselves for what may likely be their demise.

However, it was time for another surprise: Regigigas finally broke free from what impeded its movement; both the adhesive (which shattered from being so cold and dry now) and the ground which its feet were implanted under. It moved over in front of the mini-craft; Regigigas' massive size being more than enough to cover the air vehicle completely.

While the others assumed Regigigas would simply take the attack for them, the downtime allowed Regigigas to significantly regain its strength so that it could be put to good use and actually _deflect_ the remnants of Dragon Pulse and send it right back towards J and Salamence.

It was a direct hit; J did not expect this turn of events at all. Salamence was brutally battered, as it was a super-effective attack. Even more, one of the wayward blasts specifically hit J's laser cannon and shattered it to pieces. She no longer had the power to capture Regigigas, much to her irritation.

"Regigigas must be back to normal!" Dawn said with delight, also relieved that she wasn't blown into bits by that attack.

"Yeah!" Ash agreed, glad to see things finally turning in their favor. "Brandon's feelings must have gotten through to it somehow!"

That was indeed the case: Brandon's sacrifice brought forth the benevolent Regigigas known of in legends. His sacrifice wasn't in vain after all.

In spite of this, J was not deterred. She had been interrupted enough by Ash and friends to make back-up plans for such an occasion. "On to the next phase!" she shouted to her henchmen. "Prepare to attack!"

"Master J…!" a man's voice yelled; one of J's higher-ranked men. He ran over to her within hearing range as best he could.

J looked down at him, hoping this was _important_ to warrant interrupting her mission. "Hm?"

"The clients have been scared off by all the commotion and retracted their request," he informed his boss. He had gotten the phone call no more than a couple of minutes ago. It was believable enough, given how much destruction had taken place since Regigigas' awakening and how loud it was; the sounds echoing all across the northern region.

"What?" J couldn't believe she had gone this far, put all of this effort into her capture, and came so close… all for her clients to flake out on her? "Why those spineless fools…"

It pained her to just turn around and leave the business unfinished, but as of now, there was no business to be had. Regigigas would be far too cumbersome to carry around until such a time that someone else might express an interest in it, so there really was no choice for J but to end it all abruptly. She wished she could take out her frustrations on her contractors, but knew due to their reputation that it would be a _very_ bad idea.

She knew it was only a matter of time before the authorities arrived to become an even bigger problem if they truly caused so much commotion. With that in mind, she turned around to face her troops. "Retreat!" was all she said, but that simple order did well enough to get J's point across. Pokémon Hunter J and Salamence, her airship, and her troops vacated the premises in under a minute; back into obscurity until their next assigned task.

Ash was furious and wanted to chase her down and take J out once and for all, but even he knew there were far more serious issues to address at this point. He hoped today would be the day he'd see J behind bars, but her actions at the Snowpoint Temple made Ash all the more determined to see that the _next_ time they cross paths would be the _final_ time.

For now, though… there was a serious matter at hand. Regigigas had been awakened and tamed, but it seemed to be at the cost of the lives of Regirock, Registeel, Regice, and Brandon. All four statues were gathered together in a cluster as Regigigas gently laid Brandon down on the ground. His furious expressions and gaping mouth as he had hollered just before being hit by the beam were still present on the statue. J's weapons truly were horrifying.

Brock landed the mini-craft and everyone rushed out towards the group of statues. It was a depressing sight as everyone looked on, taking in the harsh reality.

"Oh no, Brandon…" Ash muttered, full of sorrow. Brandon had been one of the toughest opponents he ever faced; his defeat made Ash Frontier Brain material; something not many other trainers can boast. It was a true milestone in Ash's life, and it hurt the young Kanto native deeply to realize he couldn't do anything to help the Pyramid King and his Pokémon this time.

Dawn looked to Brock; the brain of their group. Whenever there was a problem, the Pokémon Breeder was there with some sort of home remedy to fix it. But it was obvious no home remedy would cure something like this. "Brock, isn't there any way for us to turn them all back to normal…?" Dawn asked anyway, ever hopeful that maybe the solution was right under their noses.

"I don't know…" Brock was hesitant to admit this, but he couldn't pretend nor make light of the situation. He resisted a wince as he heard a hushed but terrified sound from the Coordinator. But he understood how she felt; _everyone_ was sorrowful for Brandon and his Pokémon's fate.

Even Maria had no idea how to make this right again. Still, she remembered that Regigigas was indeed right behind them and it was stable. If anyone could restore those brave souls back to normal… it would have to be the massive legendary golem itself.

To everyone's surprise, Maria rushed over to face Regigigas and faced it. She looked up with pleading eyes… inherently the temple maiden knew Regigigas was their last hope. "Regigigas, forgive us, please!" she begged, knowing they weren't exactly in a position to _ask_ anything of Regigigas after failing to protect it. "I'm so sorry we weren't able to protect your slumber. But please, they all did their best to save you, so save them!"

She looked to the fallen heroes for a moment before continuing. "They honestly couldn't have tried any harder to save you; I swear it! Please help, Regigigas…" She took a deep breath, resisting the urge to cry. "Please help."

Ash and the others watched on as Regigigas seemed to be communicating with Maria through blinking blue lights on its symbol in various patterns. It remained peaceful, though not even Brock could hazard a guess as to what it was saying.

After a while, Regigigas finished and Maria smiled, apparently having understood it perfectly. Being one of the few in the world with in-depth knowledge of Regigigas came in handy here. "Thank you, Regigigas," she said graciously before turning to face the others. "Quick, everyone! Please stand back."

There was no argument from anyone; they listened and followed through with her request. However, they were all quite stunned that Maria could actually understand Regigigas' communication.

With the path to the statues cleared, Regigigas approached them slowly before getting into position. By concentrating its power, Regigigas invoked a soothing blue aura that consumed all of the statues. The details of this technique were quickly picked up on by Brock, who recognized the move Regigigas was using.

"Regigigas is using Hidden Power…" he muttered, prompting Dawn to look up towards him.

"Hidden Power?" she echoed, looking curious. "Isn't that an offensive attack, though?" Dawn had seen the move executed by various Pokémon several times during her journey, within Pokémon Contests, and even the Hearthome Collection Contest.

Brock had to agree that it was a strange choice. "That's true, but with a vague name like _Hidden Power_, there's obviously more to it than just offense. It's not hurting Brandon or his Pokémon right now…"

Dawn looked closely at Hidden Power's progress on the statues. "You're right about that, at least… I hope it'll work."

Sure enough, within a couple of minutes, the statues were converted back into living beings. All four of them looked disoriented, as things were quite chaotic just before they were petrified. Suddenly, it was rather peaceful with no commotion, much less Pokémon Hunter J, in sight.

"Hey, Brandon!" Ash greeted, elated that Regigigas was able to bring them all back to life. "Great to have ya back!"

"Huh…?" Brandon was still mildly confused about where he was, but looked to Ash and expected him to have the answers… for once. He just then remembered what he was doing seconds before what was originally his untimely demise. "Where's Regigigas?" he asked, sounding panicked.

Before anyone could answer, Brandon stood up immediately and rushed past his comrades to see for himself that Regigigas was not only alive and well, but peaceful at last. Brandon faced the gargantuan golem a mere few feet away and finally was delighted to see his goal right in front of his face. "Regigigas! Yes! You're alright!" he exclaimed, well beyond relieved that things seemed to work out after all, though Brandon still didn't know how.

"Thanks to you, Brandon, and the kind insistence of all your Pokémon, Regigigas has returned to its gentle and normal self," Maria noted, so gracious to finally see the silver lining on the cloud that was today's events.

"Great!" Brandon remarked, happy that his efforts really did make a difference after all. "And thank _you_, Regigigas." Even without having to be told, the Pyramid King knew somehow that this magnificent creature had something to do with his revival. A bond had been created between them; a bond that could not have formed under normal circumstances.

Regigigas accepted Brandon's gratitude in its own unique way of communicating before glowing in the same blue light described by Maria in the legend. As the light intensified, the massive Regigigas reverted back into the orb it slept in and slowly descended towards the ground, landing gently as Regigigas' spirit once again took to its shelter to recuperate.

Brandon approached the orb, kneeling down as it landed. He smiled gently towards the orb carrying the essence of what he so desired all this time. "Regigigas, I'm asking one thing…" he humbly requested. "That you'll entrust your future to me."

The orb stopped glowing, signifying that Regigigas had officially resumed its slumber. Brandon picked up the orb, still smiling all the while. Everyone else was speechless, but this time in a good way.

"Wow, Regigigas…" Ash muttered. "Even after all that, it still forgave us for not bein' able ta' protect it."

"It's magnificent how you bonded with a legendary Pokémon," Maria complimented. "That is not at all an easy task… and I believe that's why Regigigas decided to hear me out when I begged it to revive the lot of you."

Brandon nodded, looking down at the orb. "That was no small task… but I do feel the bond between myself and Regigigas. Evidently, my Pokémon already felt that bond well beforehand."

Regirock, Regice, and Registeel all gave their confirmations to what Brandon believed. Upon seeing the remains of an ancient generation of their kind, all three of them felt the inherent need to take place of those fallen pillars and pick up where they left off. The Pyramid King was still so immensely relieved not only to be alive again, but having Regigigas _out_ of J's grasp that he had not yet fully understood the long-term consequences of what transpired today. On that subject, Brandon felt he had best get up to speed on what exactly happened while he was a statue, because the hatred he felt for J quickly went beyond for the people he hated the most before these events took place. Out of everyone, he would be the least satisfied of the results.

"It's too bad we had to let J get away again," Ash grumbled. "And man, they went out in a hurry."

Brock agreed. "Even if we weren't faced with people and Pokémon to save, I doubt we would have caught up with them. Besides that, there's no sense on taking J out with a full armada when we're such a small group by comparison."

"Well, for what we had going against us going in, I think this was the best we could've done," Dawn figured. "Especially when all of this was so short-notice. I wonder why J just took off, though. For all the trouble she went through in getting Regigigas awakened and making sure we stayed out of her way, she just seemed to stop all of a sudden and leave."

However displeased Brandon was, he could figure why a Pokémon hunter would do this. "Perhaps some connections fell through," he supposed. "I did tell Sam to give word to Officer Jenny about the situation, so the whole town ahead of us is likely on high alert right now thanks to his efforts. Chances are her clients were nearby and realized they were a little in over their heads when they made their request."

"One thing that troubles me is how some mysterious outsiders knew this much about Regigigas," Maria wondered out loud. "What happened today is exactly why I've done my best to suppress public knowledge of Regigigas. The Snowpoint Temple just isn't meant for handling vandals. And now it's gone…"

Brandon scowled as he looked back down at the orb. "If I weren't tied down to so many obligations at this time, I would chase that woman to the ends of the Sinnoh region and the rest of _the world_ if I had to."

"Leave it to us," Ash assured. "We've had a habit of running into J a _lot_ since I came to Sinnoh. Whenever the next time will be, we're finally gonna put an end to her group and we'll make sure to think of you when we face her head-on."

Just like that, Brandon smiled wryly and resisted a laugh. Handy as Ash could be, it was laughable still to think of him putting J in her place on his own, especially when he outright admitted that he's yet to be successful despite running into her more than once before. "Just stay out of trouble, kid," he replied. "But do let me know if she's ever caught. It would be a great weight off my shoulders knowing she won't be able to cause these tragedies in the future."

Ash simply smiled and nodded. "Definitely, Brandon."

"I believe it will all turn out right in the end," Maria said. "Just as this situation seemed so hopeless not that long ago, and now we're all here alive and well." Her smiled faded just then. "With… the exception of the pillars."

Even with this victory, everyone else began to realize what they had left now, however valiantly they fought to defend it. "That's right," Brock recalled. "The Snowpoint Temple is almost completely rubble now. And even if it weren't, J still destroyed the pillars first. So Regigigas will have to sleep without protection…?"

The three Regis seemed to want to speak up in regards to this topic. What they insinuated made Brandon's eyes widen, yet he remained silent. The innocent Dawn smiled knowingly at the smaller golems. "Maybe it won't after all."

"We'd best head back to the temple and make plans," Brandon suddenly suggested. He was going to need some time to let everything sink in, because from the sounds of things, in spite of his efforts… he was about to lose his Regis _and_ fail to have Regigigas for himself anyway.

No one much felt like sticking around the area they were presently in, so they all boarded the mini-craft and voyaged back to where all the trouble began.

* * *

"… So just for the sake of professionalism itself, I would appreciate a _reimbursement _for all of the time, effort, and ammunition wasted in this assignment before it was withdrawn just as I was about to ensure the capture," a very irate J finished after a lengthy, but controlled tirade to the people… or rather, just one person now, it seemed, who made the Regigigas request to her in the first place.

"How rude you of the newer generation can be these days to your elders," the person chided; his tone completely at odds with the heavy and serious manner of which J spoke. Still, it was a rather distinctive older man's, yet he didn't sound the least be intimidating or influential. "These days, the very _idea_ of patience is thrown out and self-centeredness is so glorified. I suppose I can blame the media for your sake, though. You aren't _that_ young."

"Did you even hear a single word I said, old man?" J shouted, having to deal with this man's mocking attitude both in the past and for the entirety of this conversation that she arranged once she was in a stable area, able to maintain her stealth. "Rest assured that I _will_ inform your higher-up about your shenanigans, and he'll see to it you are punished and dismissed from your duties. Otherwise, if I'm commissioned by your organization in the future, I will not hesitate to raise my price and demand the money up front from now on. Is that clear, head scientist?"

The man with quite literal rose-colored glasses rolled his eyes, continuing to smile and snicker. "Of course. Now just run along; take a long, hot bath… whatever soothes those aches and pains before I start making cracks about Prince Albert in the can that will soar _so far_ over your head that my nostalgia will cry itself to sleep tonight."

J wouldn't even dignify _that_ with a response other than a disgusted and frustrated grunt before ending the call, prompting the older man to burst out into a barrel of laughter, smacking his knees with his hands as he tried to contain himself. Such a disturbing noise prompted a door to open, revealing none other than a perplexed and annoyed Saturn. He had been living a very comfortable life since returning back to the base after his cousin's funeral, making off with everything Conway ever had to his name that Conway himself couldn't take with him. He was in higher graces with Cyrus than ever and all finally felt right with the world… until he found earlier today that his cousin's computer was missing. Saturn hadn't finished pulling out every byte of data Conway held inside the console, so he had been making the rounds to find out who took it. Naturally, his first suspect was Mars, but much to his surprise she was clean, as was Jupiter.

Saturn honestly couldn't see why he'd even bother, but head scientist Charon of Team Galactic was near to the last of his list, and lo and behold, there was the entire console right in front of the old man as he laughed in glee.

"So this is where the personal computer has been all along," Saturn noted, much like J in trying to keep himself restrained and professional as best he could. Like many of his co-workers, Saturn definitely never went out of his way to interact with Charon, quick to find the old man insane. He did give Charon credit to being "more useful" than Mars to Team Galactic's cause, but stunts like this made Saturn regret ever giving that man a compliment. "Charon, I expect there's an explanation for this."

Charon smirked and turned his head slightly, just barely locking eyes with Saturn as he suppressed his laughter. "Word through the grapevine is that you've extracted a valuable source of information not long ago," he said slyly. "How unsurprising that the rumors were true; you _like_ to overachieve, do you not, Saturn?"

"It pays off," Saturn dryly replied. "Now who were you just speaking with?"

"That Pokémon hunter," Charon said, merely waving off the mention. "I believe her name is K."

Saturn was taken aback. "Y-you… you used my cousin's computer to make an independent commission from Pokémon Hunter J?"

"You're right about overachieving," Charon noted. "But the brightest among mankind know the best time to overachieve is when the opportunity to take it from someone else arrives." He was completely unafraid to admit what he did. "However, I suppose I was a little overzealous once I saw just how enormous Regigigas was in real life. A thing like that could _never_ fit anywhere in the Galactic base and it doesn't fit this place's image at all, would it? The irony of it all… an organization made to change the world adopting the legends of the old world? Then again… I wonder just how different it is from Dialga and Palkia. What with also being fabrications of this old world…"

"This is why I wonder why Cyrus bothered to hire you," Saturn grumbled. "You can't so hastily compare something as simplistic as Regigigas to the gods of time and space. But… unlike them, I was under the impression that Regigigas was only a legend."

"Hah!" Charon mocked. "You really ought to do more reading in your spare time, Saturn. It does the mind wonders."

Saturn still didn't understand something, however. "I mainly targeted my cousin's belongings based on his knowledge of Uxie," he recalled. "He never said a single world to me about Regigigas. How did you discern that-…"

"The legend may be historically factual?" Charon finished for him. "You haven't done a very good job of combing through everything digital in your cousin's name, Saturn."

"I _did_ look!" Saturn claimed. "I did not find one _iota_ of Regigigas in a single file of his! I had weeks to do a thorough search!"

Charon smirked. "You can store data in so many different ways these days, Saturn."

"I checked his CDs as well," Saturn told him. "His flash drives, and even the obsolete floppy disks! Where are you fabricating this from? Did Mars put you up to this?"

"So so paranoid," Charon patronized. "Oh, Saturn, who would go through so much trouble? Everyone knows it's the most fun to aggravate you directly." Saturn frowned flatly at that. "But you still are leaving out one critical source… the internet, boy."

Saturn immediately looked defensive. "From what accounts of his that I am aware of… I saw nothing _there_, either," he said, certain that he had caught Charon in a lie now, but was sorely mistaken when Charon let out a brief laugh.

"That's where your new-age laziness has betrayed you, boy!" Charon exclaimed. "I see, of course, the most obvious place to check first would be those web logs of his… or what your generations know as _blogs_, Saturn."

"Of course I checked there first," Saturn said, not about to believe he missed something there. "I still saw nothing."

"All that looking… all without ever actually signing on to his account," Charon teased. Again, Saturn was on the defense.

There was something strange about the day he cleaned out Conway's room of its belongings. "Well… much to my surprise, I found no trace of a password book anywhere when I took everything of my cousin's from his home. As many accounts as he has, I assumed the logical conclusion was that the password book was with him while he was out," Saturn explained. Since he never could find Conway's body, it seemed Conway's accounts would remain safe. Normally, Conway _did_ keep his password book at home, but it was one of the first things he thought to take with him while on his stealth mission during the funeral. He knew he'd have an upper-hand in his accounts' security unless Saturn resorted to hacking, of which Saturn was only an amateur at best. Of all things, this was where Conway's skills exceeded Saturn's own. It was just another reason to hate him, in Saturn's mind.

"Then you should be glad to have someone like me to pick up where you failed," Charon said with a chuckle. "In his protected, _private_ entries, Regigigas was mentioned quite frequently around a month ago. It seems it wasn't so much _his_ business as it was a friend of his, but regardless he took notes for that friend by reading what appeared to be the only known factual book on Regigigas in the entire world. After seeing the sorry, shoddy run-down excuse for a safe haven called the Snowpoint Temple, it became clear why Regigigas information was so hard to find."

Saturn just briskly nodded, unable to excuse himself for this. "Hence your motive to pursue Regigigas in the first place."

"I thought it would be harmless fun," was Charon's excuse. "For the big mission we'll have to task that Pokémon hunter with in the near future, I found it ideal to keep her on her feet so that it's a certainty that she will get the job done. I've monitored her performance today… and she certainly has a right to brag."

"Regardless, this ended up being a waste of valuable time and resources," Saturn spat. "Not to mention you pilfered my property without permission. You do realize you're getting written up for this."

Charon simply smiled and shook his head. "You can go ahead and try, but that would be an unwise move on your part."

"Your scare tactics won't work on me, Charon," Saturn countered, looking very agitated now. "By the time I finish reporting to Cyrus, I expect that computer back in my quarters or _else_."

"Such a mature threat," Charon teased. "But of course, what choice do I have? Do what you must, Saturn. Soon enough, you'll see…"

Saturn's eyes narrowed; he was sick of listening to this old man and endured it far too long, in his opinion. Like J, Saturn wouldn't dignify his co-worker with a response and slammed the door shut, immediately heading to Cyrus' office to file a complaint. Charon was in no hurry to return the computer, still. He simply looked to _his_ computer, monitoring various areas of the Sinnoh region.

"Indeed, it's only a matter of time before the fun begins," Charon said to himself. "Northern Sinnoh as a whole is quite interesting, indeed. Lake Acuity… Regigigas… and of course, Mt. Coronet." The head scientist smirked. "The findings I'll make here will cancel out every little whine that child makes to Cyrus." He started to laugh again. "It will only get more fascinating from here on out scientifically… and in the end, that's all that matters."

Indeed, in due time Team Galactic would be scouting the northern parts of the region for various reasons. But little did any of them know… they would be met with company along the way.

* * *

It was nearing sunset once Brandon and the others reached the crumbled remains of the Snowpoint Temple. The pedestal that held the orb of the sleeping Regigigas had to be moved to one of the few chambers of the temple that wasn't completely totaled. All the while, Brandon had been thinking long and hard about what was about to happen… or rather, what was practically _expected_ of him by this point. Even if this wasn't his fault, Brandon was going to be the one who paid the price for today's travesty. Though Brandon tried to think of every possible way to get out of the responsibility, maintain his Regis _and_ keep Regigigas for himself, the Pyramid King was consumed with guilt at the thought of making off with all of that, leaving Maria to deal with the shambles of the temple she spent all her life protecting.

Brandon often thought back to the moment where he was mere _seconds_ away from claiming Regigigas as his own in a manner that wouldn't bring about the guilt. All that went back to the anger he felt for J, the one who ruined that one and only opportunity to achieve the original goal.

But now things were different. Brandon couldn't bring himself to just _leave_ after this. Maria wouldn't be able to rebuild the temple on her own and start over just the same as before. She was going to need help… a _lot_ of it… and the temple by no stretch of the imagination would be able to be restored overnight. He couldn't make off with Regigigas, disturbing its slumber for his own personal reasons; especially after it went out of its way to save Brandon's life. In a way, Brandon was glad his sons weren't there to witness that. Samuel couldn't have been more right about the moral boundaries surrounding the entire matter of Regigigas. It was one of the most difficult decisions Brandon ever had to make; most of the time, he wasn't one for letting outside influence affect his decisions, much like Paul. Brandon's "my way or the highway" attitude defeated the determination of almost everyone who tried to fight against it.

This, however… this was entirely different altogether. The bond formed between Brandon and Regigigas had a drawback, as it was their connection that made Brandon realize that it wouldn't really be right to just _take_ Regigigas away. Even if he was probably the best candidate to care for it and especially now would be a better option to ensure its rest would never again be disturbed, Brandon thought back to the legend and couldn't forget that the original set of Regis protecting their leader had been destroyed with no hope of being restored.

Regirock, Regice, and Registeel were way ahead of their trainer in that respect. They had all agreed to follow the legend and become the new pillars… meaning they too would be staying at the Snowpoint Temple indefinitely. Brandon was stuck in a position where he'd be gaining nothing and losing everything. But he wouldn't allow himself to show his conflicted nature in public; especially not to Maria.

As Brandon, Ash, Brock, Dawn, and Maria stood before the pedestal, the eldest of the group laid the orb back on the cushion, officially bringing it back to a full resting state. His Regis were already in position precisely the way his predecessors were placed. This was hard, and it went against everything Brandon worked so hard for… but like Paul, today Brandon had been taught a great lesson of humility… something that hadn't truly come to him in many years.

"Well, I guess this is the best we can do for Regigigas for now, right?" Dawn assumed. "At least the temple wasn't _totally_ destroyed…"

Brock nodded in agreement. "It's a shame… I can't imagine how long it would take to restore this temple."

Ash looked to Brandon curiously. Something about the Frontier Brain did seem off to Ash, but like most oddities, he shrugged it off. After all, the man had been turned into a statue earlier today. Ash figured that might mess anyone up at least a little bit. "So what now, Brandon?" he asked. "You goin' back to Kanto now that you know the legend's true?"

The mere mention of Kanto was like a nightmare for Brandon now. Letting go everything he worked so hard for was bad enough… thinking of how to answer to Scott and the other Frontier Brains was just too much now, even for him. He vehemently shook his head on reflex before realizing he needed to finally make a decision here. Even with the battle over with, Brandon remained the de facto leader of this particular situation.

"One day, I _will_ have to return," Brandon understood. "But right now, there's something more important to do. I've made my decision… I'm going to rebuild this temple so Regigigas' slumber will never be disturbed again," he said with a heavy heart. It was so difficult trying not to sound bitter about the way things turned out.

He looked to his Regis, and though he smiled, deep down both Brandon and his Pokémon knew how forced that smile really was. "And just like the legend states, I will have Regirock, Regice, and Registeel become the three guardian pillars that will protect Regigigas forever."

Forever… was such a long time. Brandon didn't even want to think about how his life would be like several years from now, just letting his Regis spend the rest of their days in a cold, distant temple. It seemed so wrong… but Brandon knew it was the right thing to do, given what happened. He wanted to honor the fallen pillars of generations long past the current. There was no other way to do it…

"Brandon, thanks!" Maria was immensely grateful for Brandon's contributions and loyalty. She was worried sick of how she would handle the loss of her temple by herself, but Brandon's mere presence made her feel secure and certain that it would all work out in the end. And still, Brandon was ashamed that Maria thought so highly of him, not knowing that the Pyramid King was much more self-centered than he made himself out to be.

However, Brandon was enough of an adult to know even he couldn't restore the Snowpoint Temple all on his own. Regardless of the tension with Maria, Brandon was going to need her help; at least they had the same goal in mind now. He looked to the temple maiden, pretty sure of what he answer would be, but just for the sake of making it solidly understood, he asked anyway. "Maria, will you work together with me to protect Regigigas' slumber?"

He extended his hand towards an awed Maria, who shook his hand without hesitation. No doubt she was filled with delight in knowing she wouldn't be alone on this. "Yes, I'd be honored to!"

"What about us?" Ash offered. "I mean, we've been in this together this far. I wouldn't mind helpin' out, 'cause it'll still be a big job with just you two, huh?"

To that, Brandon laughed before playfully knocking Ash on the head. "Young man, I believe you have something else to prepare for! Keeping you here would cut into the training you'll need to be doing for the next ten days."

"Oh, shoot! I forgot!" Ash cried out. "I have to battle Paul at Lake Acuity…!"

"Guess we shouldn't put that off," Dawn figured. "Still, I feel bad just leaving you guys here to do all this hard work…"

Brandon merely shook his head. "Enjoy your youth – _all_ of you – I can assure you that you've done more than your fair share of saving the day."

"In that case, we'd best settle in for the night," Brock suggested. "It was great seeing you again, Brandon. I know you'll do a great job restoring this place."

"Same here," Ash added, looking to the orb. "Guess we have to say bye to the Pokémon, too. I'm glad for you, Regigigas."

Dawn nodded, smiling sweetly at the orb. "You sleep soundly from now on."

"Right…" Brock calmly agreed.

Brandon nodded to all of the brave, valiant children who helped him today. "That town that was in danger… I believe that's Silver Hills Town. That should be an ideal place for preparing for the upcoming battle and it has a train station that will take you straight to Lake Acuity."

"Well, I know where I'm spendin' the next ten days!" Ash said adamantly. "Thanks, Brandon. It really was great seeing ya again; thanks for lettin' us watch the battle and help ya out."

Dawn bowed respectfully. "It was a great honor to meet you."

Brandon and Maria saw them out, waving goodbye to the trio until they were out of sight, bidding their thanks and farewells all along the way. Brandon knew he was fond of those kids for a reason. All the same, it relieved him that they were finally gone. It was nearly twilight by that time, and things were suddenly (and rather uncomfortably) quiet.

Just when Brandon thought he could finally have a little privacy to mull over today's events, a glaring set of headlights illuminated the dreary area. A motor was running furiously and tires were heard smashing through the snow. Brandon and Maria turned around, soon faced with a certain van that had been going at full speed for quite a while now. As soon as the van was close enough, it stopped abruptly. The engine and lights remained turned on while certain familiar figures poured out of the vehicle and ran straight for Brandon, whose reaction was only shock.

"_Dad!"_

That strangled, desperate cry came from Reggie, of course, who quickly embraced Brandon while catching his breath. Paul had initially come running out, but stopped short as his much faster brother reached Brandon first. Samuel also came out of the van, but he was considerably calmer given that he had a better idea of what went on.

"Y-you…" Brandon was almost speechless. "How did you…?"

"We saw the smoke trail from the Battle Pyramid!" Reggie sputtered. "You had to have been in danger, and-… and-… are you alright?"

To that, Brandon smiled calmly. Maria was a bit in shock, as she remained unaware that those kids she saw earlier that day were actually related to the Pyramid King right until that moment. Brandon noticed Paul standing a few feet away, obviously at a loss for words himself. But for once, Brandon could see genuine concern from his second son's gestures… and he felt warm inside acknowledging that even Paul couldn't hide his true feelings in these kinds of situations.

"Never better," he finally said to Reggie. Brandon wanted to believe that, but just as it warmed his heart to see his sons running back to him out of love and concern, the future consequences of reality's harshness came crashing back down… as the Frontier Brain realized what today's events could mean for the future of his own kids. "But…"

Brandon rested his hands on Reggie's shoulders, straightening him out and giving him a hard look before briefly turning to give Paul the same gesture. All this time, he had withheld the entire truth of what his return to Sinnoh meant… namely the fact that his job was possibly on the line. While Reggie had already found out through Samuel, Paul remained none the wiser. Those consequences were the last thing on Reggie's mind as well; all he cared about was that his father was alive and well. But he calmed down once Brandon gave him that look.

Reggie was familiar with that look. He'd seen it a few times before from Brandon… and he could already predict what his father was about to say.

What Brandon actually said was right in line with Reggie's thoughts: "My sons… we need to talk."

* * *

**( TBC )**


	17. We're Gonna Need a Montage!

**( Notes:**

**Hello, and welcome to the new longest chapter of the story. That's right - this chapter narrowly beats out chapter 8 in sheer length at around 42k words/73 pages. Does that make a three-month wait worth it? Probably not...? Easiest thing to say about this delay? Winter sucks. It's terrible and soul-sucking and came frightfully early this year. I also kind of flubbed on the structure of this chapter as I stupidly decided not to look at my timeline until way after it was too late to alter the story to fit in my plot points, so I spent much of this chapter winging it, and the pacing probably makes that very obvious. In fact, it makes this chapter's title even more relevant because I certainly could have used a better montage than one crappy little paragraph at the end after spending 40k+ words detailing one freaking night and day. I originally planned to have the following days more expanded upon, but evidently I forgot that I tl;dr the most minor things and that it simply wouldn't be feasible. And since the next chapter is adapting both parts of the Ash/Paul full battle, I doubt there will be very much room for what I planned in this chapter to bleed into the next like how I usually handle problems like this. It doesn't help that this chapter was almost solely written at work, and I have a limited amount of time to do my own stuff on work time. I don't know why I'm suddenly unable to write at home; my brain just shuts off completely. Might be a full-time job mentality, or it's more likely the stupid weather. I wish I could say I'm looking forward to spring, but allergies there are just as bad, if not worse than the brutal cold this time of year. **

**So despite the hysteria surrounding this chapter, I did genuinely enjoy writing this chapter and there's honestly something for everybody here. A lot of the usual family business, long-overdue Conway+Barry antics, Fantina is introduced fully in this chapter, and there's even some foreshadowing in the form of a Team Galactic scene! Finally, Cyrus and Jupiter get speaking parts in this story. Most of this story swaps between Paul's side of the story and Conway's. I like to think it's even distribution between the two. This is a really heavy chapter in more ways than one, and trust me, I'll be expanding my adaptation next chapter to accommodate the events here so you'll get at least an idea of what happened in the interim between this chapter and next chapter. Also, for the record I'd like to say there are _no _plans as of now to adapt anything related to the Best Wishes/Black & White anime series to this fic. There isn't much of a reason to right now anyway, obviously, but I've been sorely disappointed by how the series is going so far and honestly, a lot of aspects about it piss me off. It's kinda sad when the thing I'm looking forward to the most are the two episodes coming next month that are focusing on Dawn and Brock's individual adventures. If either episode features any of the Trifecta primary characters and the episodes are decent, I'll at least consider those canon in all likelihood, but none of that will really matter until we're in the post-League saga, which is still several chapters away. This chapter technically matches up with DP130 in the anime (Looker's debut), though that takes place specifically 1 day before the full battle and 99% of this chapter is stuck on day 1/2, so take that with a grain of salt. But yeah, if you're curious as to why I'm so down about the BW anime, feel free to contact me (I'll likely make an LJ post about it or something now that I'm done with this chapter), but take it from me that the actual BW games are fantastic and I can't wait for them to come out in English. Much like the releases of HeartGold/SoulSilver, that may or may not impact how long it'll take for chapter 18 to appear. More likely than not it will. But anyway, I'm still all up in this! The road's been paved for this fic to reach the end of D/P and beyond it, so no excuses for lack of planning! **

**With all that said, enjoy your meaty new chapter! Bring your full-course dinner/breakfast/lunch; you're gonna need it. )

* * *

  
**

The day was not only long; it was _loaded_. Loaded with teases of unfinished business being completed (yet they remained only that – teases), emotional peaks reached that were never before imagined, destinies realized, and lessons of humility. Well, there was quite a bit more than just those aspects. If one had to sum up the day's events in a single word, however, there was no room for debate on what that word would be.

That word was _failure_.

Miles beyond Snowpoint City's limits, the ruins of what was once the Snowpoint Temple were barely habitable for the legends it contained, much less the human beings that remained in the area. As daylight faded from the sky, the temperature dropped accordingly. The Battle Pyramid sustained much more damage than what was initially thought. Because of that, its flying capabilities remained crippled… but the rest of the interior was relatively okay and a much more comfortable place to retire for the night than the tiny dank cavern that remained standing amongst piles of rubble. There was no concern for Regigigas any longer… as Brandon left all three of his hard-earned Regis behind to protect it indefinitely.

The Battle Pyramid was such a large facility, as it did double as Brandon's "home", so to speak. As such, there was ample space for five people to sleep and there was a kitchen. Samuel did most of the cooking, though… Brandon was not very used to working with the oven. With Reggie around, however, a well-earned hearty meal was given to the group, as the Pokémon Breeder did his absolute best to emulate his mother's cooking skills. Reggie was a natural at cooking, having won regional fairs with his talents.

It was odd for the majority of the group to be in a place like this. While Paul and Reggie were familiar with the facility, they never had the privilege of using Brandon's personal areas despite their relation. The kitchen in the Battle Pyramid wasn't large at all, but it had enough space to accommodate not only Brandon and his assistant, but also Paul, Reggie, and Maria as well. It wasn't very homely, of course… but given what happened, no one was in a position to complain.

Brandon thought it was only appropriate to talk to his children over a meal. It had been ages since all three sat together for dinner. Given that Brandon was going to be unloading bad news on them, the Frontier Brain thought he should at least make them comfortable first. The effects of the battle he had with Paul were still obvious on both sons – especially Paul, who was completely silent the entire time. Some small talk was had while dinner was being prepared, but once it was time to eat and everyone seated themselves at the table; there was an awkward silence at first. Maria and Samuel weren't sure if it was right to be present while Brandon had an honest talk with his sons, but since no one protested their presence, they wisely stayed silent and remained seated where they were.

Finally, Brandon mustered up the will to confess; his intention to have Regigigas for his own all along, his very unprofessional abandonment of his post in Kanto to pursue this Pokémon, the war waged with Pokémon Hunter J for this Pokémon, and finally how everything turned out in the end… most importantly, Brandon informed his sons of the consequences he was set to face now. The Pyramid King had no idea how he would be reprimanded upon his return to Kanto, but failing his mission was no doubt a major threat to his job… and consequently, the family's financial situation. Not to mention Brandon admitted he was now committed to rebuilding the Snowpoint Temple with Maria; there was no telling how long _that_ would take, and it was doubtful that the Battle Frontier committee would approve of Brandon squandering even _more_ time away from his real job.

Maria was a little shocked when she heard this confession. Brandon more or less had the same intentions as J, though Brandon's intentions were at least morally sound. Still, she didn't say a word. Samuel already knew most of what Brandon said already, so none of this surprised him. He looked a little somber, as he had been worried for Brandon's future from the start.

Reggie already knew about most of these consequences thanks to the brief visit from Samuel in Veilstone City. However, all of that was pushed far back in his mind until now because of the circumstances of today's events. It was not pleasant to be reminded of the risks Brandon was taking, though, and his expressions hardened when Brandon had nothing more to say.

The only one who was completely taken aback by this confession was Paul. All this time, he had no idea Brandon was in Sinnoh under very tenuous pretenses. This only made things worse for Paul's situation; sooner or later, Brandon was going to be assailed by medical bills thanks to him. Mysterious medical bills that Brandon would be interrogating Paul about… and Paul _still_ wasn't ready to break out his own confession. He could barely bring himself to talk, much less unload a mass of life-changing news to his family. But he finally found his voice again after finding out that Brandon inadvertently doomed his family to a future of poverty they might not recover from.

"All this time…" Paul muttered, unable to help his body's shivering. It was hard being sick and being emotionally tormented at the same time. "All along, you were doing this… _knowing_ you could lose your job…"

He couldn't take it anymore. Paul slammed his fists against the table and leaned over towards Brandon, glaring straight at him. "What where you _thinking?_"

Brandon knew he deserved this. Despite his youngest son's revived rage, Brandon easily caught the hint of the expression of disbelief in Paul's face. This news horrified him and he obviously wanted to think it was just a terrible joke. "Destiny called for me," Brandon calmly answered after a moment of silence. "No thought was required… though I shouldn't have given into my baser instincts. I could have left my post in a manner that wouldn't put me in the position I'm in now. But given what happened today, there's no doubt that my return to Sinnoh was indeed for a reason. I thought it was to capture Regigigas… but now I see my reason for being here was to protect it instead."

"At the cost of your family's security," Reggie quietly added, as that statement put him in a passive-aggressive mode. "And almost at the cost of your life."

It was hard to argue that. Brandon actually already admitted it, so Reggie was well within his rights to vent. "Don't… get me wrong, dad. I'm proud of you for protecting Regigigas," Reggie said in a sudden, uneasy haste. "And it's amazing that you bonded with it, but… this whole quest was just a double-edged sword from the beginning. Helping Regigigas endangers us, while helping us would have endangered Regigigas."

It saddened Maria terribly to see this event for what it truly was. This was a hard day for her as well. But she saw it fit to step in, because she felt so indebted to Brandon now… that extended to helping his children as well. "It seems hopeless now… but that's how it was while we strived to get Regigigas back. And it worked out in the end… I believe the same will happen for all of you. And as the keeper of the temple, I'll put in a good word for your father, Reggie," she assured. "Surely the Battle Frontier committee will understand when I explain to them what exactly happened."

"Regardless of that, I broke the deal," Brandon said in a strict tone. "If I were the committee passing judgment on someone in my position now, I would not hesitate to terminate them despite their good excuses."

Reggie frowned and shook his head. "But Scott and the other Frontier Brains aren't just like you, dad. From what I remember of them, they were all pretty level-headed and rational people… and most importantly, I think they're more inclined to grant forgiveness."

"Don't bank on that possibility," Brandon denied. He eyed Samuel just then. "From what I've been told, they're all quite upset with me now due to my actions. The longer I'm gone, the less they'll be inclined to forgive me. And right now, from the looks of things, my absence will be extended well beyond the length of my coworkers' patience."

Paul was still considerably upset over this. "You've already dug your own grave, and you _knowingly_ are going to dig yourself deeper now. You're out of your mind! You shouldn't have to rebuild this temple! You weren't the one who destroyed it!"

Brandon looked to Paul, stern and cold. He didn't want to be too hard on his son, as the verbal wounds he inflicted were still fresh, but as usual, Paul was being far too difficult to deal with in a gentle way. "So what do you suggest then, kid? Do you know how to track down Pokémon Hunter J, apprehend her, and drag her all the way back here to clean up the mess she made?"

"Stop patronizing me," Paul shot back. "How hard is it to just hire some construction workers to rebuild the temple? This temple _isn't_ your responsibility; there's no reason for you to just stay here…"

"It's true that this is far too much of a task for me to do alone," Brandon solemnly admitted. He very rarely indicated his own limitations. "Even with Maria's help. And your suggestion is what I have in mind, but this is not any ordinary establishment we're rebuilding, kid. This is a precious piece of Sinnoh's history, barely hanging by a thread. Ordinary construction workers won't understand that… and that's why I must remain here. I must oversee the reconstruction from beginning to end and make sure the Snowpoint Temple is rebuilt _faithfully_… I owe Regigigas that much for saving my life."

Reggie seemed to be a bit more understanding of Brandon's position, but he couldn't help but feel this was a much more daunting task that Brandon was making it out to be. "Even with your supervision, how exactly are you going to remake an ancient relic? It's not like you can just glue the rubble together. You'd have to eliminate it… an all-new temple would just be a shell of the original. But that's your only option…"

"You leave worrying about the temple to me and Maria," Brandon assured. "Because you two have more important things to do than worry about my problems."

"Your problems directly affect us!" Paul shouted. "If you lose your job over this, it's going to jeopardize the entire family! How can you expect us not to worry?"

It really was saying something when _Paul_ was the one getting upset and worried over someone else's problems. Of course, Paul had his own reasons to fear the worst-case scenario. If his family couldn't afford hospital bills, he'd have a lot less than twenty years to live.

"Paul's got a point, dad," Reggie acknowledged. "We need to be thinking of ways to get out of a worst-case scenario. It's a very real possibility we can't ignore…"

"As head of this family, it's my duty to bear the burden," Brandon stated, stubbornly standing his ground. "Rest assured I will do everything in my power to keep you two afloat." But then, he quickly looked tired. The day's events and what was most likely a food coma combined made everyone pretty exhausted by this point. "But we'll get into that matter tomorrow… a good night's rest should clear our heads."

Now that Paul thought about it, he _did_ feel quite faint; more so than usual. At this point he was getting a little better at knowing when to stop, though Paul still looked disapproving of his father's decision. "Just say so if you need time to stall," he insulted before turning around. "You're not evading this tomorrow morning, so follow through with your promises for once."

"On one condition," Brandon replied, still relatively professional in how he handled his own kin. "You don't spend _all_ of tomorrow on this matter. You have a very important battle ahead of you in ten days; I expect you to be training for that up to the very day you see Ash again at Lake Acuity."

Thankful that his facial expressions were hidden now due to his shift in positioning, Paul's eyes narrowed at the reminder. He'd be more thankful eventually, but right now Reggie's suggestion for the future battle was the last thing on his mind. Given the events that went about after the grudge match, it was obvious that he completely forgot about it. Having the opportunity to one-up Ash was something Paul couldn't pass up, admittedly. If there was one thing he was always sure about, it was his superiority over the Kanto native in battling abilities… and now even _that_ was in doubt. The fact that Ash had already defeated Brandon and conquered Kanto's Battle Frontier was still a lot for Paul to swallow.

Brandon knew it, too. Hence he smirked after hearing Paul's reluctant consent. "You don't need to remind me about that," he was lied to. But even without facial expressions giving it away, Brandon could tell Paul was lying if only due to the moments of silence that preceded Paul's claim. "It's a _given_ I'll be training. So don't waste my time by prolonging this, if that isn't too much trouble."

Paul wasn't actually meaning to come off as cruel as he sounded, but it was quickly showing that Brandon was right about everyone needing rest. The youngest of this group was the one who needed it most of all, given that his inner turmoil prevented him from getting the sleep he needed the night before. He was beyond cranky as a result. No matter how old he got, there were childish moments Paul would continue having for years to come. Brandon directed Paul to where the guest rooms were and breathed a sigh of relief as he disappeared down the hall, assured that the others would follow suit soon enough.

"Sorry," Reggie apologized automatically. "I didn't think he'd have it in him to react so strongly, given what's happened."

"Given what's on the line, I'm surprised you're as calm as you are now," Brandon noted. "I was going to tell you to not let the pressure of living up to your mother's name crush you." This wasn't a shot at Reggie's giving up – this was a fair warning of what Brandon knew would befall his first son due to the position he was in. "You're not nearly making the kind of money she made," the Pyramid King said bluntly, making Reggie flinch a bit. That was just a _painfully_ true statement right there. "I was certain you'd be just as upset as your brother because of that."

"Well, I can't lie… I _am_ upset," Reggie begrudgingly confessed, unable to look Brandon in the eyes all of a sudden. "But in my case, I've had more time for this to sink in…"

Brandon's eyes widened at this statement while Samuel immediately looked nervous. "What are you implying?"

"I… er, I told him," Samuel spoke up, hoping he wouldn't get punished for admitting the truth. "I'm sorry, Brandon."

"Don't be sorry," Reggie urged. "You were right to tell me about it. And at the time you probably didn't think things would end up like this."

Samuel shook his head. "I didn't want to _believe_ they would," he explained. "But I was very aware of the risks from the beginning, which is why I agreed to come here as well."

While Brandon didn't like this, he didn't have the heart to be harsh to his assistant. After all, it was ultimately Samuel's efforts that got him the opportunity to finally get Regigigas; there would be no telling how long it would have taken Brandon to reach the same location on his own. The upgrades he implemented to the Battle Pyramid would enable Brandon to keep his promise about staying in touch with his family a little better, so this was a gift of longevity that could not be ignored. All in all, it was a minor error that wasn't worth the time to even acknowledge.

"So you've known for a while now," Brandon understood, looking to Reggie. He was still apprehensive about looking directly at him. "Well, that would explain it. I do appreciate your maturity nonetheless."

Something about that statement rubbed Reggie the wrong way, even if it was a compliment. Most likely he just didn't like how even Brandon's compliments could come off so unpleasantly from certain perspectives… namely his brother's. The Pokémon Breeder had the energy to burn unlike Paul, but the frantic driving effectively wore him out and his nerves were more or less shattered since he came to the conclusion that his father might have been hurt.

He knew he was losing his mature touch when he couldn't help but blurt out a reply without thinking about it. "I'll just consider myself fortunate to not have been defeated by you today," Reggie muttered. "If I went through that…" He was getting a headache just thinking about it.

Brandon always seemed to push a little too hard, even without meaning to. Even he was as cranky as Paul by now. "We've all had a hard day," Brandon stated, cutting Reggie off. "It was not my intention to bring this on. Go to sleep, son. Make sure your brother's doing what he was told, if it's not too much trouble."

That was rather abrupt, but Reggie was too tired to question it. Looking uncertain the entire time, he finally stood up from his seat, nodded to Brandon, and silently walked off in the same direction as Paul. With the "kids" finally absent, Brandon looked expectantly at his assistant.

"Sam, direct Maria to the other sleeping quarters," he ordered, standing up himself.

Samuel followed suit, as did Maria shortly after. He nodded to Brandon cautiously. "So… we're all going to bed, then?"

"It's best this way," the Pyramid King decided. "We'll all need the rest to endure tomorrow… there isn't much more we can do about what happened tonight."

Maria nodded obediently. "I understand. Until the morrow, then."

The shrine maiden was going to be the easiest problem to deal with, Brandon figured. She lacked the abrasive personality to challenge Brandon, but it was likely to be the most awkward part of trying to make ends meet. They had the same goal in mind as far as rebuilding the temple went, but Maria was notably shocked when she realized Brandon's true intentions, and the Frontier Brain knew it was useless to carry on the façade any longer. He knew Maria seeing his shoddy fathering abilities wasn't going to help his case, either. But they were going to have to trust one another in order to accomplish the most important task… given what Brandon had on his plate, he figured Maria would come last. She was the most willing to wait (given how little she spoke during this aftermath), and she was the most unfamiliar territory. It only made sense to Brandon to skirt around the deal with her while he took care of some immediate problems.

As the three parted ways to retire for the night, Maria finally wanted to comment on something. "I'm honestly shocked that Brandon is a father," she whispered. "The connection with those three… seems a tad rigid."

"Don't feel bad about not figuring it out earlier," Samuel quietly assured. "You're not the first one to be confused by all this."

Maria nodded a little, looking quite thoughtful despite her tired state. "I've never seen a family so distant. And yet this means Brandon is a married man himself despite this job of his?"

"Not quite," Samuel replied. "It's… a long story."

A long story that wouldn't be told tonight. Things just kept piling up; one by one. One long day would eventually lead on to another.

* * *

Conway wished he could be surprised by the fact that Fantina, Gym Leader of Hearthome City, was absent from her Gym yet again. He had heard the rumors prior to his official trainer alignment, and even Paul admitted on one occasion that he had a hard time pinning Fantina down to a scheduled Gym Battle because of her frequent absences. Just scheduling a battle with her was harder than the battle itself, or so Paul claimed.

Fantina attracted a lot of attention when she first stepped into Sinnoh as a foreign citizen. Her frequent appearances in Contests attributed to her _lack_ of appearances in her Gym, and yet she was charming and talented enough to keep her position despite her irresponsibility. Really, the more Conway learned about the woman, the more interested he was in meeting and battling her. That seemed to be her appeal, so to speak. But part of Conway remained hardened. He was still on a mission despite his new ditsy tagalong. Conway was taking a page out of Paul's book and doing his best to eliminate his inherent weaknesses… one of those being a fear of ghosts. Fantina, a Ghost-type specialist, would surely put that phobia to rest… Conway was sure of it.

At the same time, he had to endure life with Barry and make sure his team would be up to snuff against whatever Fantina might throw at him. There was no official statement on when Fantina would return, so Barry and Conway remained vigilant and hovered around Hearthome City all the meanwhile.

An idea struck Conway not long ago in terms of how to combat Fantina just as a wild Lickitung passed by. While Paul struggled against Brandon up north, Conway methodically captured this Lickitung for himself. Barry honestly didn't see the appeal, but Conway always saw things in Pokémon that Barry couldn't. Normal-type Pokémon like Lickitung were impervious to Ghost-type attacks. However, it was also true vice-versa; this was something Conway was determined to improve.

There was one move Lickitung could learn that could effectively damage a Ghost-type with ease. It already knew Lick – a Ghost-type attack – which would prove to be a valuable asset in the battle. The move Conway was determined to have Lickitung master, however, was Rollout. He indeed had a masterful plan in the works, though it wasn't obvious in the training regimen. All it appeared to be was Lickitung simply training on mastering Rollout. A simplistic attack in execution meant that the training wasn't exactly exciting to watch. Throughout the morning, Barry watched Conway encourage his Lickitung time and time again to execute the attack perfectly. He wasn't sure what was more grating – watching this or waiting for Fantina.

"I can't believe you woke me up just to watch this," Barry complained, sitting on the ground and leaning against a tree. "Seriously, what's the point?"

Conway simply smiled. "While we're compatriots in this little adventure, I figured it's only expected that we learn something from each other and better ourselves for it. Just pay attention and you'll learn how important it is to be precise in your move execution."

Barry just huffed. "And just what did you mean on that last part?"

"You're a bit sloppy, I'm afraid," Conway bluntly said all of a sudden. The friendly tone that was almost always present in his voice faded just then, but it quickly came back before Barry really took notice of it. "In theory, your hectic melee style works well with moves like Poison Jab, but you'd do well to get a little variety going on in your team."

"Sloppy, huh?" Barry never was that good with taking criticism. "This coming from a guy who won't even throw a real punch. You're one to talk!"

While the statement was valid, it didn't really affect Conway the way Barry hoped it would.

"Of course. I'm working for a greater variety in my team as we speak," Conway said with a nod. "Just look behind me: I'm teaching Lickitung _physical_ attacks. Remember what I said about paying attention?"

It was all right in front of Barry's face. He looked embarrassed by his sheer lack of foresight and just glared at Conway, puffing his cheeks out like an angry small child would. "Alright, _fine_. You got me there. But who'd blame me? I don't get up this early in the morning! Only thing you're doing now is making me want to fall asleep again!"

Conway rolled his eyes and sighed, silently scolding himself for not realizing earlier that Barry needed constant activity in order to learn. It would speed up his Lickitung's development… With all of the weight of his destiny weighing upon him, Conway wondered if maybe he should follow Barry's example and maybe sleep in a little more often. Right now, he felt his judgment to be just a little clouded. "I suppose you have a valid point," Conway conceded. "You aren't much of a listener, so I'll simply have to beat the lesson into you."

That took Barry off-guard. "Wait, what…?"

Conway crossed his arms, looking at Barry expectantly. "Send out one of your Pokémon against Lickitung. Preferably something that would help in it mastering Rollout." He couldn't put it any simpler than that.

"I'll admit, I wanna see why you think it's so important to be picky about your moves," Barry said, smirking as he understood what he needed to do. "Alright, then! The choice seems clear to me. Wake up, Staraptor…!"

He tossed the Pokéball, though Staraptor needed no wake-up call; birds like it were natural early risers. It was completely awake and aware. Meanwhile, Conway couldn't help but be intrigued by Barry's choice. "Interesting. Didn't think you would be inclined to let Staraptor take more Rock-type punishment after Slowking flattened it with Power Gem," he said, mildly impressed.

"Like we'll make it that easy for you again!" Barry shouted back, stomping the ground to show how mad he was over that turn in their first battle a few days ago. "This is called _revenge!_ Look it up!"

Conway couldn't help but smirk at Barry while adjusting his glasses. "How generous you are; even your vengeance will help me to get stronger. Lickitung will be thanking you later after I win my Relic Badge."

Barry pointed at Conway in dramatic fashion. "You're gonna lose even worse than I did with an attitude like that!" he announced. "Staraptor, use Double Team!" Upping the Predator Pokémon's evasiveness was very appropriate for the training Conway had in mind, though the mind-boggling task of dealing with multiple illusions of Staraptor at once was a bit ineffective when the real Staraptor had been stationary in a single spot for several seconds beforehand.

Not that Conway would announce this folly out loud before making Barry out to be a fool; that was just too tempting to pass up. "Lickitung, you know where to aim," he assured. Conway was relieved his Pokémon turned out to be infinitely more attentive than his traveling partner. "Now…!"

Needless to say Barry took a step back in horror when Lickitung nailed his Pokémon spot-on even with the task of having to throw such a large rock up into the air. "What the… what is this?" Barry shrieked. Evidently Staraptor was as overconfident as its trainer, given how it didn't even try to dodge the attack before it was too late. "There's no way…! You shouldn't have been able to get it right on the first try!"

"Goodness, maybe this _is_ a little too much for basic morning training," Conway mused. "Instead of perfecting Rollout, perhaps it would be better to teach you how to _dodge_ first."

"Don't you start with that!" Barry protested, still believing Conway must have cheated. "There's no way you should've been able to tell which Staraptor was the real one that fast!"

Conway was not impressed with that response. His tone was flat and exasperated as he took it upon himself to inform Barry of how such an impossible feat was achieved. "Barry… your Staraptor stayed in one spot the entire time. I _paid attention_." He then pointed at Staraptor's position as it recovered from the hit and became airborne once again. "Not to mention this is the worst time of day to rely on eye tricks; the sun's current position casts your Pokémon's shadow from my viewpoint. That's another crucial detail setting apart one Staraptor from the fakes."

Barry never had a case fall apart so fast before. "But that's…!"

"The facts," Conway cut in with confidence. "And nothing more. Now please oblige me, Barry. A moving target is much more challenging."

It never ceased to amaze and horrify Barry how easily Conway could get under his skin. He was making it way too easy for his intellectual companion to call out his errors. His short fuse was burnt out and the day had just begun. "Fine, have it your way!" he cried out. "Staraptor, use Close Combat!"

"Huh?" Conway didn't think Barry would go this far already. Lickitung, while holding another boulder to prepare another Rollout practice, never saw Staraptor coming until it was too late. Staraptor's fierce talons smashed the boulder into pieces and struck Lickitung across its face, causing the latter to reel back in pain from the super-effective attack. "Oh, now that was just uncalled for."

"Well, I'm teachin' _you_ a thing or two now!" Barry proclaimed arrogantly. "In this case, it's reaction time! Act first, or regret it!"

That so-called lesson was one Conway decided to keep in mind for mysterious reasons. "That's all, then?"

"Not everything has to be complicated, you know," Barry mocked. "In fact, the less complicated the better! So you're better off surrendering now, really."

Conway was about to call a truce, but hearing an arrogant response like that quickly made him withhold it. He looked to his Lickitung, who was getting back on its feet. "Lickitung, do you believe you're ready for the real thing now?" Lickitung nodded without hesitation.

The fact that Conway wasn't bending to Barry's will deeply bothered the latter. What he was insinuating didn't make things better, either. "Wait, what the heck are you talking about?" he inquired. "Tell me now or I'll fine you till the end of time!"

Truthfully, Conway figured that was a sacrifice he'd have to make just to travel with Barry in the first place. "Your lack of attentiveness will become your undoing," he said slyly. "Can you not even guess what I meant?"

Vague as he was, Barry thought back to what Conway said and tried to think of viable matching context. "You said "real thing"…" he recalled. "Are you talking about the battle or…?"

"The move?" Conway smugly finished for him. "Barry, if you _paid attention_, you'd know I've merely had Lickitung practice for Rollout; not actually utilizing the move. "

"That doesn't make any sense at all!" Barry exclaimed. "How do you practice for an attack without actually doing it? Why are you being so confusing?"

Conway just had to shake his head at that. "Pray no one ever battles _you_ in the morning," he teased. "It would be a train wreck. But honestly, these methods are not unheard of."

Gesturing over to the bits of shattered rock surrounding him and his Pokémon, Conway proceeded to explain the scenario in full. "When a Pokémon _really_ uses Rollout, they utilize their own body rather than simply throwing a rock. To perform the attack well, your Pokémon needs to be at the peak of physical health and strength. It also requires flexibility, but Lickitung is already quite adept in that department. What I am focusing on is the strength of its limbs."

All of this was going straight over Barry's head. "I don't get it. If Rollout's that simple, why are you trying to complicate it?"

"I'm having Lickitung master this attack for a specific purpose," Conway said as he adjusted his glasses. "Yes, it's rather easy to do a casual Rollout, but up against a Flying-type like your Staraptor, it's much harder to make good use of it. So I'm rectifying this because I am specifically incorporating the attack into my strategy to deal with any Flying-types Fantina may have."

"But she's a Ghost-type specialist," Barry pointed out. "How are you so sure she'll have a ghost that flies? I mean, I could tell you, but how could you find out for yourself before you battle her?"

Conway just smiled, looking up at the morning sky. "Let's just say I pay attention _a lot_. I'd prefer you keep me in the dark about her teammates as well," he requested. "It's more of a genuine challenge that way."

Barry glared at his traveling companion. "You didn't really answer the question, you know!"

"It's all in the details," Conway informed. "If you paid attention to how she dresses and if you've ever seen her in a Contest, odds are she's going to battle with a Pokémon she's blatantly a fan of. And what Pokémon does her gown represent, Barry?"

Really, in his true boyish nature, Barry didn't pay any mind to Fantina's absurd fashion. At the same time, her look was iconic enough to easily remember. "Huh, you know… her dress does kind of look like a Drifloon or Drifblim…"

"Both of which are Ghost and Flying-types," Conway noted. "It's very risky to hit a Ghost-type with a super-effective attack, but it's relatively safe with Lickitung since, being a Normal-type, it has immunity to Fantina's specialty. There's the added bonus of it already knowing Lick, which will also critically damage a Ghost-type team."

This was quite an ingenious strategy, Barry had to admit. At the same time, however, he scratched his head and looked almost intimidated by the confident nerd standing before him. "You're _certain_ you're not a witch? Because… wow."

It was difficult for Conway to maintain his cool now. That blasted accusation and Barry seemingly taking it seriously was just too much. "I swear, if it's the last thing I do, I'm going to make sure you learn how to pay attention to details before charging in to a fight," he grumbled. "Lickitung, get into position!"

"Ack!" Barry forgot their Pokémon were kind-of-sort-of fighting now. "Staraptor, go higher up! Lickitung's not gonna be able to get you with Rollout high in the sky!"

A dark grin appeared on Conway's face as Staraptor followed its Trainer's orders. "And once again, you miss the point of the entire practice," he chided. Lickitung had curled itself into a ball and was ready to start rolling at any time. "Lickitung, it's time! Use Rollout and propel yourself up to get Staraptor!"

Lickitung kicked up mounds of dirt and dust as it revved itself up for a ride. Conway looked at Barry, enjoying the helpless, foolish look on his face. He had no idea what was about to happen. "It's not gonna happen!" Barry barked. "You're not gonna be able to reach Staraptor; no way, no how!"

"Staraptor _is_ at a rather high altitude," Conway admitted, focusing on the Predator Pokémon in the sky. "But now you'll see where the training pays off, Barry. Lickitung, I truly believe the sky is the limit for you! Never give up; you can do this!"

Indeed, Conway was using the nonsensical yet extremely useful method of encouraging his Pokémon to go above and beyond. With Conway's faith and trust, somehow that was enough for Lickitung to do the impossible. Dust clouds formed all over the training vicinity as Lickitung took off; all the time it had spent revving up allowed it to roll at an amazing speed right off the bat.

"Barry, you'd best get out of the way," Conway warned in an eerie tone. Barry stared at his opponent, dumbstruck as usual. "_Now._"

"What're you-…" Barry had no time to finish his sentence before he saw Lickitung coming right towards him. "GAH!"

Barry threw himself to the ground away from the tree that was behind him – the actual target Lickitung was aiming for. At the last moment, the Licking Pokémon propelled itself from the ground using its massive and powerful tongue, and made contact with the midsection of the tree trunk. Using its legs, Lickitung rebounded upwards like a rubber ball and climbed steadily in altitude as it closed in on Staraptor. With its trainer too stunned to give a command, Staraptor was stuck. Well, there was that and the fact that Lickitung's body was soon enveloped in a cloak of light before colliding with the Predator Pokémon – quite a distracting sort of thing. Barry gaped at the sight while Conway smirked, quietly laughing to himself at the blinding light reflected off his glasses.

After the brightness faded away, Staraptor crashed hard into the ground, completely knocked out. Shortly after, Conway's Pokémon made a perfect ten landing. But the size and girth… not to mention the shade of pink, was quite a bit different from the usual Lickitung's.

"Absolute perfection!" Conway exclaimed with pride. He ran over to congratulate his partner for a job well done. Barry managed to sit up, but he was overcome with shock.

"But that-… what just happened, that was…" Barry stammered, managing to point at the large pink Pokémon in front of him.

"The whole point of this tedious procedure," Conway "finished" for him. "I now not only have Rollout perfected, but I got an evolution out of the deal." He looked up to his Pokémon and smiled. "Lickilicky, I dare say you might be fully ready to take on Fantina."

As Barry finally managed to stand back up, he was quick to throw a tantrum. "And you were okay with making me a target?" Evidently, he saw that Conway intentionally was trying to hurt him. "That's just cruel! Unacceptable! And I'm fining you!"

Conway nonchalantly shrugged. "If you must, but I _did_ tell you to get out of the way." He knew if Paul was in his position, he likely would have let a human target get rammed without warning. It could always be worse. "In any case, it's high time for a break. I completely forgot about breakfast."

Barry put his hands over his grumbling stomach, thinking over what Conway said. "No wonder this was so annoying," he muttered. "I'm starving!"

"Lickilicky, return," Conway called out, holding out a Pokéball that shot a beam at the Licking Pokémon and recalled it. Afterwards, Conway happily gazed at his Pokéball. "Such excellence must be rewarded," he decided. "And rewarded greatly. And for being such a good sport, Barry, consider breakfast on me."

"H-huh? Really?" Color Barry surprised. "Are you gonna order all the fancy stuff like you've been doing?"

Conway proudly pointed his index finger towards the air. "We are hard workers; we have earned this. So do not question it. Just indulge in a well-deserved reward. After that, we'll focus on your training. How does that sound?"

"Now you're speaking my language!" Barry agreed. Even though he'd been nothing but exasperated at Conway this morning ("exasperated" being an understatement at best), Barry was often quick to let go of the past… or rather, _forget_ the past and move on to the good times. "We doing room service again?"

"But of course," Conway replied in a random fake accent. Meanwhile, Barry recalled Staraptor to its Pokéball. "Let's hurry along before breakfast hours are over."

"Way ahead of you, man!" Barry called back, immediately speeding off past Conway and back to the hotel they were staying in. Conway just smiled and shook his head at this, only slightly increasing his pace.

Nice as this was, the daunting task at hand for Conway was an ever-present concern. It never once left his mind, but in times like this, Conway could rest at ease. He was at least grateful for Barry being around to lighten up the scene; Conway wasn't really used to serious and dangerous situations yet. He knew he'd have to learn to adapt someday, but that's what this training was really all about. Conway's precise calculations rewarded the trainer with results. At this point, Conway knew he was ready for Fantina. He was ready to conquer his fear of ghosts. Now it was just a matter of time before Fantina would return and become available again…

But first, it was time for Conway to spoil himself. As long as he had his parents' credit cards, his money was seemingly infinite.

Even though there were so many other things going on in Conway's life now, not a day passed when he _wouldn't_ wonder about how Paul was faring. Where could he be heading after Snowpoint City? He'd probably never know… slowly but surely, Conway was finding himself able to make peace with Paul if the opportunity ever arrived. He'd never change his mind about how blatantly cruel Paul was to him, but that was just his nature… Conway knew that. This was no easy ride for Paul either. Both had their fair share of disasters on the way up the mountain. If Paul would apologize, Conway would be ready to accept it. Even if they parted on bad terms, that was never Conway's intention. The split-up was entirely Paul's doing. Therefore the matter of whether or not the two could make amends in the future rested entirely in Paul's hands. Even if he was cold, bitter, and hateful more often than not, Conway _had_ seen Paul's rarely-displayed better qualities. Where Maylene and even Reggie found Paul to be utterly despicable for his actions, Conway was the only one who saw where Paul was coming from.

The folly Conway made that broke the trust and consequently his friendship with Paul was one he regretted every single day. The intellectual knew no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't change the past.

Even so… he could _always_ work for a better future. That was a universal constant that Conway liked more than any other.

* * *

Like the previous day, Paul made sure to wake up earlier than he usually did. He didn't want his family interrogating him about the medication he was mandated to take at least twice a day on a daily basis. Thankfully, Paul did have a considerably better sleep. His mental state was still a mess, but exhaustion finally took priority and forced the cold-hearted trainer into a deep sleep. It helped that the bed he slept on was extremely comfortable. If there weren't so many other things on Paul's mind now, he'd probably be rather indignant of the fact that Brandon had such high-quality beds while he and Reggie were left with mere ordinary standards.

This was also the first time in years that Paul and Reggie slept in the same bed. By the time Paul turned ten, he was adamant about wanting his own bedroom separate from Reggie; quite typical of a boy that age. Since Brandon was never home, Reggie managed to grant his little brother that wish by converting Brandon's desolate bedroom into his own, leaving Paul with the one they shared.

Really, Paul was too tired to protest sharing a bedroom with Reggie again now. Given his condition and his conflicted feelings of wanting to be alone, yet needing a shoulder to lean on the night before, Paul was thankful in a way to have Reggie right by him. It was even more apparent when Paul ended up snuggling against his brother while he slept; that was something that embarrassed Paul deeply when he woke up, and it made it a bit more difficult for him to get out of bed without disturbing Reggie's slumber. He succeeded despite some close calls.

Paul wandered through the halls after taking his medication and getting dressed up. He made his way to the main hub of the Battle Pyramid – this was his first time actually seeing the controls made to pilot the oddly-shaped vessel. Call it a feeling, but Paul correctly assumed that he'd find his father awake, stoic and stiff, standing before the massive windshield that displayed the outside world. The way the Battle Pyramid landed was perfect for watching the sunrise.

Due to the travesty that was his battle with Brandon, Paul was still hesitant to directly confront him. Sure, he freely barked out at him when he found out about Brandon's financial risks, but that was hard to control. After all, the possibility of Brandon failing to capture Regigigas and the consequences behind it were never once on Paul's mind. He was _dead certain_ the Pyramid King would succeed in his mission. There was no such thing as failure whenever Brandon was involved (unless it's some sort of fatherly task); that's what Paul believed.

This belief; this certainty had now shattered, much to Paul's horror. Just like how Paul's assumption that Ash would never surpass him fell to pieces yesterday, more and more Paul became uncertain of his own judgment. What was true? What was false? What was a universal constant, and what was subject to change? On top of all that, Paul didn't know what drove him to become a Pokémon Trainer. There was revenge, but nothing else apparent. Brandon hated having to resort to forcing that reality on Paul, as this was what Brandon did to make Reggie question his own motives. That resulted in Reggie's retirement. Though Paul was horribly confused and drowning in his own mental turmoil, he had no desire to give up. This had nothing to do with spite or Paul's conscious decision to be everything his brother wasn't: Paul just didn't want to throw in the towel. He didn't know why exactly, but the point is that Brandon's harsh lessons, though virtually identical in nature to both Reggie and Paul's cases, produced different reactions from his sons. Brandon hoped that would be the case; he prayed at least _one_ son wouldn't be a quitter, and it comforted him to see that Paul was indeed the one he could still have faith in. It had worn thin by now, but it still existed.

Eventually, Paul forced himself to move forward and watch the break of dawn with his father. Though Brandon wanted a moment of peaceful solitude before dealing with everyone involved in his life today, it warmed his heart to see his youngest son standing right by his side, doing as he did. Neither made any attempt at conversation, choosing to focus on the beautiful scenery in front of him. Paul especially made sure to absorb as much of the sight as best he could; he knew soon enough that one day he wouldn't rise with the sun ever again. Never before was Paul so grateful to be able to wake up, though it wasn't apparent in his behavior. Something did seem off about the young trainer to Brandon, but he couldn't really put his finger on it. He had so many other issues to deal with, so his ability to focus on one slight oddity was greatly limited.

"Thank you," Brandon finally said in the softest tone he could muster. "I wouldn't have expected your unconditional company at this hour."

Paul couldn't bring himself to say "you're welcome". The remains of his pride held strong against the enemy. "I… just needed to think," Paul excused; though his uneasy tone made it obvious he was lying. "That's what you're doing, anyway."

Brandon smiled proudly as he gazed at the sky. "Like it or not, you are your father's son for certain. I would have claimed such an obvious lie at your age."

That prompted Paul to look over at Brandon curiously. Yes, much as he hated to be considered Brandon Junior, this had to have been the first time Brandon ever spoke of his childhood. "I don't understand," Paul admitted. "How you're able to read me this well when you haven't spent any time with us until now… you read Reggie like a book too," he added. "Like you knew him better than he knew himself four years ago. How do you do it?"

This was an interesting topic to start with, given the more pressing issues surrounding them all. Still, it was early in the morning and it was just the two of them… Brandon welcomed an off-topic break. "It pays off to be very attentive to details," he said, mirroring the philosophy of someone else in Paul's life. "Your brother has gotten better about it over time, but at your age, he never did anything for himself. He was so absorbed in everyone's problems but his own… that blinded him for years. He became a trainer, and he battled because I expected him to follow my example. If he had even taken a moment to think for himself, he'd have realized long ago that his passion for battling is nonexistent. I knew early on that it would be difficult to get your brother to utilize the strengths he was gifted with. Unfortunately, he's made his decision to squander his talents. After our battle, his true potential may never be seen again."

Brandon had hit the nail right on the head, and that was startling for Paul. He couldn't argue it; Brandon's thoughts about Reggie were almost exactly like his own. "Didn't you do the same thing?" Paul asked him, though in a civil tone. "You wanted to be Sinnoh's Champion… you're strong enough by now. Why do you keep doing this, then?"

"Being a Frontier Brain, you mean?" Brandon asked for clarification. Paul nodded back. "It may seem similar, but it was more of a sacrifice in my case rather than just giving up. In theory, I could make another attempt like I did years ago… but not only is it not a guarantee that I'll succeed, the risks and consequences of abandoning the Battle Frontier indefinitely outweighed all the positives of such an action. Your mother is no longer around to take the financial fall for me."

Paul's expressions hardened as he interpreted this in his own way. "You're saying it's our fault, then," he assumed. "Reggie and I are holding you back."

"Never say that again," Brandon darkly commanded. Chaotic as things were in the past when Andrea passed away, the Pyramid King absolutely refused to blame either son of his for what happened in the aftermath. "It was my decision and mine alone to go to the Battle Frontier. And no adult in their right mind would make scapegoats out of children, much less their own."

"Does that make what I said any less true?" Paul honestly asked him. "You could have tried again… but you were stuck raising both of us after mother died. Face it: if we weren't a factor, you _would_ have kept trying until you got into the Elite Four."

This was becoming too much for Brandon to bear. Paul was technically right; Brandon's responsibilities as a parent came first before his dreams. If he didn't have Paul and Reggie depending on him, Brandon wouldn't have so hastily tried to find employment.

"We will discuss this matter no further," Brandon coldly said to his son. He was quite stern about this, which Paul took notice of. "Last night, you were quite adamant about focusing on the more pressing matters we have now, were you not?"

Paul could admit to himself that this was getting a bit off-topic. He wasn't even sure why he felt so inclined to even lend his father an ear, much less actively converse with him. But he felt oddly content to stand his place, father by his side, watching the morning come. "You? Following up with your promise? That's a first."

A bratty statement like that normally would have earned Paul a slap upside the head; more often than not he deserved that. But Brandon was in no mood to quarrel. He was certain that something was odd about Paul's behavior; never before had Brandon witnessed Paul actually attempt to take the blame for an incident. Guilt was something rarely seen in the young trainer, even less so for Brandon.

"Listen well," the Pyramid King instructed. "I'm certain you recall it, but yesterday I told you that we will battle again someday… once you're able to tame your emotions when it comes time to battle. You know that battle was simply my giving an example to you of what's to come when we _truly_ clash."

Paul looked to the side, feeling uneasy. "About that…" His tone was flat and stale. "You challenged me and Reggie to battle after we've done what we're supposed to do. We assumed you'd capture Regigigas… so then we'd have to battle it and the other Regis. That makes up over half of your battling team. But now you don't have _any_ of them. Once you leave this place, you're leaving them behind. So how is that going to affect our true battle?"

"I'd be lying if I said our future battles will be unaffected by this," Brandon admitted. "It is a great loss, but you ought to know I have captured _many_ Pokémon since I started my journey decades before you were born. I will easily be able to fill the void and provide you with a full battle, with or without the Regis."

"But then we're not really beating you at the peak of your power," Paul pointed out. "You have other Pokémon, but they aren't legends. This won't be the battle we're destined to have."

Brandon shook his head. "Do not sell my other Pokémon short. Just because they aren't legendary does not mean they aren't powerful. I'd even go as far to say that my starter is on par with the Regis… even Regice."

Paul was taken off-guard by that statement. He had no idea why Brandon would bring up Regice out of left field, but the identity of Brandon's first Pokémon was a complete mystery to Paul. He had hardly even thought about this before. "Your starter…? But which one's…?"

"You'll find out," Brandon said with a grin. Of course he was going to keep Paul in the dark, as he knew how shocked his son would be once the mystery was finally solved. "But know this: the very day I received my starter, I knew I was destined for great things."

"Is that some kind of hint?" Paul asked as he mentally ran through what could possibly fit as Brandon's starter. He knew most likely it was one of the three Sinnoh starters, but knowing a traveler like Brandon, it could be anything.

It pleased Brandon to see that Paul was actually getting a little worked up over this. "Not at all; merely a sign of destiny that had to be recognized. It could apply to any Pokémon you start with. Byron and Palmer experienced the same destiny as I did when they got their starters as well."

"Your old friends," Paul muttered in acknowledgement. "So from the beginning, you say you were destined for greatness. And now you're head of the first Battle Frontier… Byron's one of Sinnoh's strongest Gym Leaders…" Paul was speaking from experience here. "And Palmer's…" he kept forgetting who exactly Palmer was.

"Palmer managed to defeat me in battle not long ago," Brandon told him, which surprised Paul. He wondered why Brandon didn't speak of Palmer as often as Byron, but if Palmer defeated him, Paul figured Brandon was rather bitter over the loss. "In doing so, he became a Frontier Brain… but I decided, instead of uprooting him from Sinnoh and separating him from _his_ son, he would become head of the new Battle Frontier here in Sinnoh as the Tower Tycoon."

Paul widened his eyes as he realized something. "Right… Sinnoh has a Battle Frontier now…." He looked up at Brandon, almost glaring at him. "So why don't you just transfer out to here, then? Your facility is mobile; it wouldn't be that hard!"

"Interesting as that would be, my place is in Kanto," Brandon said with a subtle tone of resign. "I helped found the first Battle Frontier; it wouldn't be right for me to abandon it until I'm unable to carry on my duties." Paul's suggestion was actually giving Brandon some new ideas, however…

Paul growled in frustration. He knew he was supposed to be controlling this better, but Brandon made it impossibly hard sometimes. "You're loyal to your work… it's a shame Reggie and I never see this kind of effort from you when it comes to our family."

That struck Brandon rather hard, mostly because it was completely true. He always went above and beyond to further his career. Meanwhile, he was nearly forgetting his sons' birthdays and made no attempt of his own to solidify the ties between his separated family. "I promised to change that," Brandon reminded him. "You were there when I made that vow to Reggie."

"Speaking of…" Paul muttered, just realizing something. "You just referred to Reggie by name. And you did it yesterday, too. He hasn't battled you yet… and you said you'd never truly see either of us as your flesh and blood until we defeated you. What's up with that?"

"Ah, you picked up on that, did you?" Brandon asked him with a smile.

Paul shook his head. "Reggie did, just as we were leaving yesterday. He nearly had a seizure of sheer happiness over that. But still, it doesn't make sense."

"I'll admit, part of it was due to my assigned role – assigned by _you_, kid – as a professional familiar to him," Brandon explained. "But the time has come and passed… Reggie is now eighteen years old. Regardless of what he's accomplished, reaching that age is an informal rite of passage in a man's life."

Raising an eyebrow in confusion, Paul just had to ask. "And that means…?"

"It means Reggie has become an adult," Brandon clarified. "Or the first form of an adult – still with freedom with the direction his life is going. He'll settle in fully as an adult whenever he sires my grandchildren." Because Brandon had a strong doubt of Paul being the one to bring about the next generation… at least while he was alive, anyway. Reggie, on the other hand, had become a natural-born mom despite his gender. He was already taking care of babies, as that was in a Pokémon Breeder's job description. Brandon figured once Reggie found a girlfriend, it wouldn't take long for his first son to settle down and have some children of his own to dote on… because he couldn't baby Paul for much longer and the Pokémon were merely filling a void for him.

Even if it seemed pretty inevitable – Paul also felt this way – the youngest member of the family was a bit uncomfortable with the prospect of Reggie moving on to the next stage. Most likely this was because there was only one girl Paul could imagine snatching Reggie away to make babies: a certain pink-haired local Gym Leader, whom he loathed. Maylene as a sister-in-law? Paul felt ill just thinking about it.

"So he's an adult now; I get it," Paul replied. "That's all it takes for you to address us by name otherwise?"

"Well, since he's a full-grown man now, it's a bit inappropriate to call Reggie a boy or kid," Brandon admitted, chuckling a little at the thought. "I could attempt it, but I wouldn't be able to hold in a straight face. He'll always be my son, but I must recognize his maturity. This does not necessarily mean he's earned my respect; that can _only_ be gained through defeating me in battle."

Paul nodded; this sort of made sense to him. Brandon was such a straight and narrow man who very rarely joked around, and calling his full-grown son a child in public was a little silly. "So the same applies to me?"

"What I hope for more than anything is that you defeat me _before_ you enter that rite of passage," Brandon challenged. "You have a little under five years left, and you have as much experience as a Pokémon Trainer as your brother by now… roughly."

"I am catching up to him," Paul claimed. It wasn't an unfair claim to make; the younger brother was just two Gym Badges, one League Conference, and one Battle Frontier short of matching Reggie's accomplishments exactly. "We'll see how we match up when we start training for today."

"Ah, thank you for reminding me," Brandon reacted, moving away slightly to reach for one of his traveling packs to take out six Pokéballs. Paul looked on, completely confused. "I took the liberty of getting your six Pokémon from yesterday healed up; Sam has made some amazing technological improvements to the Battle Pyramid. So you were just spared a lengthy trip to Snowpoint City's Pokémon Center. I'll have to thank him later today."

Paul stared at Brandon as he clumsily accepted his six Pokéballs back. "You… didn't have to do that…"

"Of course I did," Brandon insisted. "I'm the one responsible for your team's condition… as well as your own. Bear in mind, though, I want you to focus only on battling Ash for the next ten days. Unless it's for supplies, I don't want to see you take one step into Snowpoint City until this battle has come and gone."

"No problem," Paul muttered. "I have no intention of facing Candice before battling that guy."

"One more thing," Brandon announced. "Those Pokéballs you're holding… the Pokémon contained in them are yours, but I swapped most of them out for ones you didn't use against me. I want you to specifically use these six Pokémon I hand-picked for you to defeat that Kanto boy."

That was mildly surprising. Brandon was getting really involved in this battle Reggie set up… it was a bit of a surreal experience for Paul. "Any particular reason why you picked… whatever you picked?" he asked his father. This was pleasant and off-putting at the same time for him.

"I'll admit I'm curious to see where your true strengths lie," Brandon told him. "Something seemed off about the team you used against me yesterday… and I couldn't help but notice that you kept Torterra out of this, even though its type combination is ideal against two of the three Regis and happens to be your strongest Pokémon."

"I'm saving Torterra for the _real_ battle," Paul said in an adamant tone. "And I decided to use it against Candice as well… in this environment, it's risky to overwork Torterra."

Brandon nodded in agreement. "Even though you know the last thing a Torterra should face is an Ice-type specialist's Pokémon. Do you enjoy making it harder for yourself and your Pokémon?"

It would never cease to disturb Paul how well Brandon could read him. He couldn't even get out of this with a lie, because Brandon would negate them all with his intuitive skills. "I have the experience; I can afford to challenge myself. Reggie never did this… I already know how it pays off. I defeated Byron with type disadvantages across my entire team – since I know it's possible, I'm going to defeat the last two Gym Leaders this way as well. Whatever it takes to get ahead of the competition."

Brandon recalled when he first arrived in Sinnoh and ran into Byron, who had been defeated by his son just the day prior. Byron filled Brandon in on the details. The Frontier Brain wondered if it was a coincidence or a pattern, but it was now confirmed to be a pattern. This was actually a relief for Brandon: he knew this way of thinking was much like any future Champion's. Going above and beyond to do the impossible… Paul was in that mindset. It seemed there was hope after all… but Brandon saw it fit to give his son a very important tip in this realm of thought.

"You have the right approach to this, kid," Brandon commended. "But the mistakes you're making will cost you. If you insist on challenging yourself, consider the level of your opponent first. Regardless of your experience, if your opponent's strength is equal or greater to yours, the only sensible thing to do is make a strategy with the absolute strongest attacks and Pokémon. I'll admit I was surprised that against _me_ of all people, you would challenge me to a full battle with half your chosen team not even fully evolved."

This was a good point; something that reflected the lack of thought Paul put into making his team in haste yesterday. Electabuzz, Magmar, and Lairon were all in their middle stage of evolution. Lairon was hardly even used by Paul these days; it was just a harebrained idea of his that he might finally get it to evolve to Aggron through that battle. But of course that backfired: Lairon was taken out before it even got to attack.

"It made sense at the time," Paul claimed. It sort of did, but… then again, he really was too preoccupied and didn't have enough time to really make sense of anything yesterday.

"Oh?" Brandon seemed to know Paul was making things up as he went along already. Not that it took a genius mind to comprehend that, but obviously Paul was going to have to lie better than that to convince his father. "Enlighten me."

But Paul really didn't feel like trying today… not when he could tell right off that Brandon didn't believe him. From there, the battle was uphill and nigh impossible. It was far too early to be expending his own energy on a mere lie.

"I don't want to talk about it."

* * *

The rest of the world started waking up at last. Not about to miss out on a potential chance to battle, Conway patiently waited by the front door of the Hearthome Gym. Later on in the day there would be a long line of trainers, all wanting a shot at the foreign Gym Leader. There was no telling whether or not she was even in town today, as there were no signs or notices to indicate that she wouldn't be.

Barry, of course, could not _stand_ this. Soon enough he was marching in angry circles around Conway, who amusedly let his companion do as he wished. For being such a nice guy and footing the entire breakfast bill, Conway thought this was a nice way to even out the odds.

"Getting dizzy yet?" Conway asked after a while, trying to keep a straight face. Barry did not stop, shaking his head in frustration.

"I am _way too focused_ and _way too mad_ to be dizzy right now!" he proclaimed. "This lady is gonna get the biggest fine ever made, I tell you wha-…"

Barry's tangent distracted him from his circle pattern; his frantic legs strayed from the circle away from Conway and inadvertently lead Barry to march right into the Hearthome Gym's outer walls. He fell over promptly on his back. Conway was greatly entertained by this stunt, unable to help cracking a smile now as he peered down at his blond sidekick. "Perhaps your brain should be coordinating your legs better, then," he teased. "They definitely looked dizzy to me."

Something about that statement made Barry snap. Not even properly responding to Conway, Barry roared out a holler as he pushed himself up, hopping from one foot to another and forming fists, shaking with superficial rage. He started beating on the walls, continuously making a racket and making a scene. Thankfully, the streets were rather deserted this time of day, but that didn't embarrass Conway any less.

He took a mental note there and then: _never_ take Barry along on any stealth missions.

"I know you're in there, Fantina!" Barry cried out, now taking his frustrations out on the front door. The last thing Conway wanted was to make a bad first impression; he wanted to rip his partner away from the building, but he also knew better than to get between Barry and the target of his frustrations. "Now come out of there and fight like a _man!_ I'm gonna beat you this time!"

Conway sighed and reached into his carryon bag, pulling out a square piece of deluxe chocolate. He had a particular liking for imported (and thus ridiculously overpriced) chocolates – something he feuded over often in the past with Paul, who couldn't afford such luxuries. Barry was much more supportive of Conway squandering money over silly things, but he was also rather greedy when it came to sharing the spoils. To Conway, these pieces of chocolate were his portable happy places.

Just as Conway was about to take a bite, Barry looked over behind him and eyed the chocolate. As usual, Barry forgot about the tangent he was on and focused on the treat Conway planned on enjoying to cope with the madness going on around him. "Hey! You said you were out of those when I asked you for one earlier! What's the deal?"

"It was a tactical lie," Conway straightforwardly admitted. Seeing that Barry had an eye for his chocolate, he was quick to take a bite. The Razz Berry filling presented itself from the chunk of chocolate Conway hadn't yet devoured, making Barry turn around completely from the door. "If I told you I still had some, you would have devoured them all by now… and the last thing you need is more sugar in your system," he scolded. "Just look at you now."

"Don't mess around with me, man!" Barry warned, making his way over towards Conway… who admittedly couldn't help but be a little intimidated. Sure, Barry wasn't the brightest crayon in the box, but he was still fully capable of beating Conway to a pulp just like anyone else. "I won't stand for you holding out on me!"

"Oh? You want this?" After Conway devoured the last of his Choco-Razz square, he pulled out another for Barry's viewing pleasure. "This right here?"

"Yes, I want that," Barry barked out. "Now hand it over!"

One of Conway's favorite things about being with Barry? The fact that the Twinleaf Town trainer made it _too easy._

"You're absolutely certain?" Conway asked mockingly. Seeing Barry nod while in utter panic brought him such sadistic joy… now he knew Paul had been a bad influence on him.

"Come on, already!" Barry cried. "This isn't funny, you know! Only I know how to be funny!"

Well, after that much torture, Conway thought it was only fair to give Barry what he wanted… but only if his new friend humiliated himself in the process. "Fetch, boy!" Yes, Conway actually _threw_ the chocolate piece several feet away from him. It landed right on the hardly-sanitary ground, but that didn't deter Barry from chasing after it without question. Conway had to hold back in a laugh as the desperate blond proceeded to pick up and eat the chocolate without even dusting it off first.

"Mon dieu, what is that 'orrible noise out there?" a new and accent-heavy voice asked all of a sudden. Conway turned himself around to find Hearthome City's Gym Leader standing right outside the front door of the facility she so often abandoned. Despite it being so early in the morning, Fantina was fully dressed for the day in her usual gown with her hair done up in its usual style… something that must have taken well over an hour to do each day. She had heard Barry shouting at her but couldn't make out his threats. Never before had Fantina endured such rowdy challengers; she was mostly in disbelief, but she was even more shocked when she finally came outside just in time to watch Barry eat something from the sidewalk. "_Parbleu!_ You should not be eating anyt'ing from t'ere, mon cher!"

"Huh?" Barry looked up, only to fall over on his behind in shock as he pointed his shaking finger at the woman. "_Aha!_ So the coward finally shows herself!" He quickly picked himself up from the pavement. "Prepare to go down, Fantina!"

"Eh?" Fantina was momentarily confused, but gasped when she gave her prospective challenger a closer look. "Wait a minute… you are Barry, the boy from Twinleaf Town, n'êtes-vous pas…?"

Conway raised an eyebrow at the Gym Leader. "You remember this guy?" Though it wasn't beyond Conway's imagination, given his acquaintance's brash demeanor…

"Of course she remembers me!" Barry proudly affirmed. "I left the biggest impression on her than any other challenger; isn't that obvious?"

Fantina wisely chose not to make a remark to Barry's obvious overstatement. Instead, she looked to the other person in her presence. "One familiar face," she acknowledged. "But I do not believe I 'ave seen you around before."

"You certainly have not," Conway said with a humble bow. "Con-… er, _Colin_ from Celestic Town; Pokémon trainer and hopefully future challenger of yours," he said with a quick save. Prior to meeting Barry, he had no problem referring to himself under his pseudonym only (as well as his chosen fake hometown). But since the two had spent a while together and Barry had quickly busted Conway's ruse, it was easy for him to make a slip like this, and he knew he had to be more careful about this in the future. "Enchanté, Mademoiselle."

It wasn't every day that Fantina got prospective challengers that could speak her native tongue. She glowed with joy and shook Conway's hand; this was a rare treat for her, after all. "Oh, what a well-mannered young man we 'ave here! Welcome, welcome!"

"Hey wait a minute!" Barry objected, marching over to Conway while looking rather indignant. "You didn't come from there and that's not your na- OW!"

Naturally, Conway wasn't going to let Barry finish that sentence. He could have sworn he went over this with his companion already, but evidently instructions were something Barry couldn't remember to follow completely until he'd been run through them at least fifteen times. So all in all, Conway didn't feel too bad when, in the most subtle way he could manage, he waited for Barry to get close enough so he could stomp on his foot with all his strength. It wasn't much, but definitely enough for Barry to feel it; it helped that Conway did this without warning. Fantina didn't notice the slightly elder boy flattening his cohort's foot, and recalling the kind of person Barry was from previous meetings allowed her to believe the blond just stubbed his toe on something instead.

"Ah, I see someone still 'as not learned the value of patience and paying attention." Fantina chided. "Barry, you will not be defeating me anytime soon if you do not shape yourself right."

Barry's rage was only focused on Conway now. "You-! You dirty little…!"

"Barry, non," Fantina cut him off, scolding him like a preschool teacher would one of her students. "T'is behavior is not acceptable; you know t'is. The way you are behaving is not like a Pokémon Trainer, but rather a… ah…." She hesitated, suddenly unable to think of the right word. "What you of Sinnoh would call, a…"

Before Barry could cut her off in return, Conway gave a humble suggestion in the smuggest tone he could muster. "Un garçon inculte peu?"

"Ah, précisément!" Fantina agreed with delight. "What a worldly young challenger I 'ave before me today! Would you be so kind to treat moi to une bataille?"

"It would be an honor," Conway accepted, gleeful that the art of sucking up was working wonders for him on this woman. Going against nothing but Ghost-type Pokémon would be no walk in the park, even without the phasmophobia. With it, however, there was the added challenge of conquering a fear that ruled Conway for the majority of his life. It was something Conway could no longer afford to have; failure was not an option here.

This decision was not quite unanimous, however. Barry recovered in time to protest. "Now _wait a second here!_" Conway never thought he'd hear such words in that order spill out of that boy's mouth. "I thought I made it clear that _I_ was gonna take Fantina on first!"

Conway shrugged, feigning helplessness. "Well, in the end, I think it's not up to us," he supposed. "It's up to her, right?"

"Even so!" Barry called out of spite. "Fantina knows who I am! She knew I was gonna challenge her to a rematch! Why should I have to wait?"

"T'ink of it as a lesson of sorts," Fantina suggested. "You were the naughty one making that fuss outside my door, non? Barry, you do know better. Clearly, you are in need of… what do you call it, a "time-out"? I will battle you today when you 'ave done as I asked."

Barry grasped at his hair in frustration. "Y-you've gotta be kidding me!"

"I don't think she's kidding," Conway remarked, continuing to look like the perfect angel in this situation. "You can still watch our battle, though. That ought to give you some time to finalize your strategy."

"Hey! I've got _total_ faith in my strategy as it is now!" Barry shot back. That was one more thing that Conway saw in contrast to how it used to be when Paul was his traveling partner instead. At least Paul didn't throw tantrums that never failed to disrupt and destroy the intellectual's inner peace and Zen, but it was still a bit refreshing to be in the presence of someone who would take a chance on blind faith. Conway's fellow Veilstone City trainer was so rigidly against such optimism that he was honestly a downer to be around for most of the time.

By this point, the group of three had entered the Hearthome Gym and made a beeline for the stage where the battles would be had.

"I do look forward to combating you once more, Barry," Fantina assured. "Surely you must 'ave the strategy to defeat me at last."

"You'd better believe it," Barry warned. "Just know this: _I'm_ the main event. This guy here's just gonna be your warm-up match!"

On the other hand, Barry was arguably worse about insulting Conway than Paul was. Or at least Paul wasn't so desperate and petty to do it every other minute like Barry did. It was obvious to Conway that Barry was just jealous now, though. After all, Barry was so certain he'd beat this nerd to the punch in Hearthome City, but his erratic and childish behavior ended up backfiring on him. To Conway, this was sweet poetic justice at its best.

"Well, monsieur Colin, I 'ope you are more t'an what Barry claims of you," Fantina said, just as the battling arena was within sight. "For defeating me will be no easy task. Wit' any luck, though, it should not take you t'ree attempts like it will notre ami persistante."

While relieved that his patience rewarded him with what would soon be his third Sinnoh Gym Badge, Conway's inherent phasmophobia was coming to the fore now that he was actually within Fantina's domain. It was only to be expected of a dedicated part-time Coordinator who thusly placed great importance on aesthetics, be it her Pokémon, herself, or even her own Gym. But since Fantina specialized in Ghost-types, Conway didn't take his surroundings into consideration until he found himself overwhelmed with the dark and spooky atmosphere the Hearthome Gym's interior exuded.

"I assure you I will give it my all," Conway promised, though his feelings of discomfort were well-noted by both the Gym Leader and his traveling partner. It was a little ironic, in a way, that a young man who was notorious for his "creepy" moments and startling sudden appearances could be so easily intimidated. "It's just… despite doing the necessary research and knowing your area of specialty, I can't help but notice your Gym's…. interior… contrasts greatly with its outside appearance." While they continued walking, Fantina looked back to Conway with a puzzled look on her face as an awkward silence followed that comment. Quick to save face, Conway waved both hands to the side, "brushing off" said comments he just made in desperation. "Not that I find it a problem, of course!" he assured. "Your interior design is impeccable! It was just the difference of styles in the transition from outside to inside that surprised me…!"

He certainly didn't mean to come off as offensive or needlessly critical, much less let on to his opponent that her atmosphere was succeeding in freaking him out. Outside, the building was so brightly-colored and fit in perfectly with the pleasant surroundings that made Hearthome City such a popular place in the Sinnoh region. The gigantic sculpted Drifblim that sat on top of the Gym's roof made the place seem even more inviting; though Drifblim by nature could be fearsome, it was also perfectly capable of looking harmless and fun, as shown by the positioning of the sculpture on Hearthome's Gym where its flowing extensions were reminiscent of some sort of carnival attraction. Given how lively, social, and overall pleasant Fantina was compared to most other Ghost-type specialists, it was a bit jarring for most trainers once they actually went inside the Hearthome Gym and found the facility overall to be a bit poorly-lit compared to others. The battle arena was visible enough, but the muted hues of the lighting made even that area a bit disconcerting. The walls were dark; ancient and ornate relics such as century-old chandeliers and candle-lit hallways did well to darken the mood. Barry was a bit distracted with all this during his first visit to this place (shortly before he met Ash Ketchum, no less), but by now this was nothing new for him. Conway, on the other hand, had to take all of this in and still retain his composure. It was especially difficult for him, given his fear of the supernatural from beyond the grave.

Thankfully for Conway, Fantina was still a little slow picking up the nuances of her non-native language when people like Conway gratuitously used complex or uncommonly-used words and phrases. Not wanting to think too much about it, she simply reassured Conway with a smile as the group reached the stage where they were to battle. "You 'ave such a way wit' words, Colin," Fantina complimented as she quickened her pace slightly to stop in front of the boys. "Now, if you would be so kind as to wait a moment or deux, I must prepare. It will not take long; please be patient."

"Of course; take as much time as you need," Conway assured with a hesitant nod. As Fantina took her leave, Barry muttered out a complaint.

"Not _too_ much time; we've had to wait for this lady for way too long now," he grumbled, crossing his arms and tapping his feet as his impatience was quick to build itself back up.

Conway let out a half-amused, half-exasperated semblance of a laugh at Barry's statement. Amusing as Barry's mannerisms were, he was still more interested in taking in his surroundings. Since he had to battle Maylene outdoors in a mere neighborhood backyard, this was really only Conway's third time being inside an official Pokémon Gym (counting the Canalave Gym back when he watched Paul's battle with Byron over a month ago). The unique water-based battlefield in Crasher Wake's Gym in Pastoria City versus the rocky terrain of Byron's led Conway to believe that these particular Gyms were self-contained independent environments that vastly differed from the surroundings of the town or city they were stationed in. Given the opportunity to take in the full view of Fantina's deceptive battleground; the poor or unusual lighting, the small, stained-glass windows that allowed for very little natural light to get inside the Gym (so any Pokémon that would be relying on a strategy based on Morning Sun or Synthesis for recovery purposes – i.e. Ash's Grotle, would be out of luck here), the large, cathedral-styled walls and the ornate furniture decorating much of the place… Conway had no doubt in his mind that Pokémon Gyms had no guidelines or instruction from the Pokémon League to even try to keep things streamlined and uniform. Perhaps that was part of the challenge prospective trainers had to face on their way to qualifying for the big leagues? It made sense, but it still came off as a humorous irony to Conway, who knew thanks to the jobs his parents had that most professional areas of work were very keen on doing the opposite of what these Pokémon Gyms did.

Still… this particular case would be giving Conway an additional issue to endure as he strove to earn his Relic Badge. He was all for expressions of creativity, but overcoming the fear of ghosts would be made even harder if Conway would have to do battle in what was essentially a haunted house. Everything in here made Conway feel on edge – the least of which not being those decorative Duskull-shaped lamps. If there hadn't been such a powerful driving force (in the form of Saturn) behind Conway's motivations, the relatively fresh Pokémon Trainer had a feeling he wouldn't have had a chance to defeat Fantina on the first try. Barry's track record against her was showing enough: though Barry was by no means a "strong" trainer in Conway's eyes (definitely not up to par with Paul, anyway), the blond was still perfectly capable of surprising the guy who thought he already had it all figured out. He wasn't _completely _inept despite his demeanor. Knowing that, and now knowing Barry's had an especially difficult time defeating the alluring, soulful dancer told Conway that the challenge just ahead would be much greater than the ones presented by Maylene the newbie and Crasher Wake the powerhouse.

This was where believing in yourself came in handy; Conway wasn't going to beat Fantina with low self-esteem for certain.

"You know it's too late to back out now," Barry taunted after noticing his companion had gone a while without saying anything. Though it hadn't been that long since they teamed up, Barry was familiar enough with Conway already to find it odd that he hadn't been gabbed to near death with useless factoids and observations. Conway more than made up for Barry's lack of academic aptitude and was determined to cram as much information into that inattentive head of his as he could. This was a perfect opportunity and Barry was actually expecting it; the look on the silent Conway, however, told the story itself. "If you're having second thoughts, maybe you'd better let me take Fantina on first after all, huh?"

Such taunting was a tactic Conway usually used on Paul. Surprisingly, his fellow Veilstone resident was susceptible to any threat to his abilities and would do anything just to prove Conway wrong. The elder trainer thought he knew better than to fall in the same trap, but there was just _something_ about the way it was said… or more likely _who_ was saying it to him, that made him throw logic out the window in favor of making Barry look even more like a fool by proving him wrong.

"If you continue to make such shallow observations, _you'll_ be the one to fall in battle today, Barry," Conway warned, doing well to keep his anger to a minimum. "I know a strong competitor when I see one, so I'd prefer not to waste my concentration before the battle prattling on with the likes of you."

"Say what you want, but you look totally _terrified_ right now," Barry pointed out… and he was absolutely right for once. "You'd better shape up if you think you're gonna beat her in one go. Sure, this place is weird, but it's not _that_ scary. Maybe if we were like four years old it'd be scary…"

In many ways, Barry was indeed Conway's biggest adversary yet. It was in one specific area, however: the fair-headed Pokémon Trainer was nothing less than a seasoned pro in the art of rattling an opponent's nerves. Often it felt like Barry was hardly even giving Conway room to _breathe;_ how Conway was going to deal with Barry for the rest of Sinnoh would be the ultimate challenge here. More than the rest of the Sinnoh Gym Leaders, more than possibly facing hundreds of Pokémon Trainers in the Sinnoh League Conference… possibly even more than his cousin Saturn.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you're going out of your way to sabotage me," Conway calmly accused. "I'll have you know I'm not so easy to scare, however. You're best off not to waste your-"

"**BOO!**"

Conway shrieked immediately, cowering away before finding himself instantly enraged upon hearing the roaring laughter of his so-called friend. "_Barry!_"

That reaction was far too priceless, and Barry thought it was well-deserved after Conway made him out to be a simpleton a few hours earlier. "Calm down, man," he teased. "I'm just helping you prepare for the battle! Fantina's gonna have you screaming like a girl the whole battle if you get scared _this_ easily!" Now it was his turn to look smug and condescending. "You're so lucky to have a guy like me to learn from – because_ I_ know all about the tricks and terrors Fantina's got up her sleeve. Looks like we have just enough time for a little crash course before you face your doom, too!"

This was not reassuring in the least for the intellectual young man of the duo. More and more Barry's antics made Conway miss Paul's company with each passing day. That really was saying something, given the cruelty his abusive acquaintance inflicted on him in the past.

* * *

Cruel as Paul had been, the scolding Reggie gave him yesterday over the matter was enough to finally make the younger brother question the ethics behind his actions leading to the dramatic end of what was quite possibly his first and only friendship. The matter remained to be a plague in the back of his mind as he went about his duties for the day. He assumed the training for the upcoming battle against Ash would begin immediately, but instead Reggie insisted that their "training" would begin with helping their father and Maria clear out the rubble from what remained of the Snowpoint Temple. The shrine was not completely destroyed, but enough so that rebuilding it with the original materials it was carved from centuries (possibly millennia) ago would be nigh on impossible. The first order of business was to clear the area out to make room for the construction workers and equipment that would come along in the future. Brandon spent the later half of the morning making arrangements over the video phone. Maria assisted him there while Samuel resumed repairing the still-damaged Battle Pyramid, which remained unable to fly despite having enough power to be a comfortable habitat for the night.

So while all that was going on after a large and hearty breakfast made by Reggie, the Pokémon Breeder volunteered himself and his little brother to be on clean-up duty in regards to the masses of rubble scattered about the area. Knowing what Reggie had in mind, Brandon agreed to it and sent his boys outside to haul and move along the debris in heaps at a time; of course the Pokémon would be assisting as well.

For Reggie, a task like this was not at all a big deal; he was a very strong young man despite his gentle nature and was quite capable of lifting numerous heavy things for a lengthy period of time. It was especially easy for him since he had spent the past few days doing hard labor in the form of snow plowing when he cleared up and freed the neighborhood of one of his customers that had been cut off from civilization under deep snowdrifts that kept growing at a rapid rate. Reggie and Infernape's efforts combined defeated a snowstorm with relative ease. Paul, however, had a much harder time adjusting to the manual labor. Luckily, he had several strong Pokémon perfectly suited for this job from the ones Brandon hand-picked for him to use against Ash in nine days. Ursaring, Electabuzz, Magmar, and even Torterra were capable of hauling more rock than Paul could with his own two hands. Though Honchkrow and Weavile were considerably smaller and lacked the muscle strength to carry much, they utilized their own strengths by using specific moves (Weavile's Metal Claw and Honchkrow's Sky Attack) to smash large slabs of rock into smaller pieces, making it easier for the rubble to be transported elsewhere.

Likewise, Reggie's full team was on hand and doing their part just as they did when Reggie was tasked with clearing out tons of snow: Marowak's Bone Club did an even better job with breaking up the chunks of debris too large for anyone to carry, Staraptor was just as efficient (if not more) as Honchkrow in breaking up the larger stones with Brave Bird, and of course Infernape could do the same job with the most finesse with the aid of Mach Punch. It could also do the hauling job, which Ampharos, Bibarel, and Swalot all did with competence. Even with twelve Pokémon aiding in the job, however, it was quickly made obvious that even the easiest task of the Snowpoint Temple restoration project would not be an overnight process. Thankfully, more help would come from outside sources in the coming days. For now, the duties rested solely on the hands of the core family. With twelve Pokémon and Reggie performing their tasks as expected of them, it was soon made apparent that Paul was falling short – not out of laziness, but due to his more limited physical capacities. The first couple of times Paul's arms gave out from the weight of the rocks he carried, Reggie brushed off them as mere accidents. After that, the elder brother was starting to get a little concerned. It didn't appear that Paul was overdoing it in terms of how much rubble he transported per trip, and Reggie always knew when it came down to just the two of them that _he_ was the klutz of the family; not his brother.

Never once did Reggie come close to suspecting the real cause of the repeated spillages: his brother's deteriorating condition. Paul never was very strong physically (much as he would have liked to have been), but something about this climate was making the terminally ill trainer's body break down much more quickly and apparently than usual. The abuse Paul's body and mind had taken since the start of his journey to Snowpoint City was nothing like which he suffered before, even when traveling previous regions. The only place Paul had been prior to his Sinnoh journey that came even remotely close to Snowpoint's intensity of coldness was the Ice Path in the Johto region – roughly a year ago from this point. Still, the Ice Path was barely comparable to the much longer and open-air northern routes of Sinnoh. He did not accompany Reggie on his first journey to Snowpoint City almost eight years ago since the elder brother earned his Icicle Badge a mere month or two prior to his mother's death, which was only then that Paul accompanied Reggie on his journey for the long haul.

So this was not only Paul's first exposure to virtually arctic conditions (for a long period of time, no less), but his first time enduring it while recuperating from various injuries. His near-death experience which Conway saved him from that took a week and a half to recover from, the cracking of his ribs which to this day hadn't fully healed up, and the physical torment he voluntarily suffered through on the last leg of his journey to his destination that resulted in the humiliating loss to Candice just before the official diagnosis all came together, and the result was a very feeble trainer in his early teens feeling more like he was in his early eighties. It was painful to look at, and though Reggie knew he would get a scolding if he pointed it out, he was too concerned to just watch his brother break down like this and doing his best to ignore it.

"Are you feeling alright, Paul?" Reggie finally asked, almost certain he wouldn't be getting an honest answer either way. "Don't think you can't take a break if you need to; the Pokémon and I have this covered."

"I'm _fine_," Paul bitterly assured, but unsurprisingly he was unable to make himself sound truly sincere. "The sooner we get this done, the better; I don't see why we even have to do this if you and the old man made the training for the full battle out to be top priority, though."

A fairly valid point to make; it was only to be expected that Paul didn't see this work the way Reggie perceived it. "Believe it or not, Paul, this _is_ part of today's training."

That just sounded ludicrous to Paul… enough so that he felt the need to drop what he was doing and take a seat. He really wanted to see what sort of baffling logic of his brother's was behind this move. "You've got to be kidding me…"

"Not at all," Reggie replied. "In fact, this is better for the way you battle than it is for mine; I can tell you put just as much importance on a strong defense as you do your offense." This wasn't just from seeing how Paul operated in his battle against Brandon yesterday; Reggie had seen his brother battle many times over the years and a few outstanding factors remained a constant as Paul grew both as a trainer and a human being. "This kind of workout will do a lot for your Pokémon's stamina, Paul. And I've learned that it's just as important to keep yourself in shape alongside your Pokémon during the time I've been training – it strengthens your connection to your team."

Paul was too tired to roll his eyes, but oh; how he wanted to right now. "Sounds like you're listening to Maylene too much," he criticized. "Being "in tune" with my Pokémon isn't going to make that much of a difference in battle."

"You don't think so?" Reggie asked in an innocent tone, dropping what he was doing then and there. "Let's see if you're right, then."

"Huh…?" Paul looked up at his brother, gaping. "You mean…?"

With a smile that said he meant it, Reggie nodded. "We've cleared up just enough ground to have a battle. No harm in doing so here when everything's already reduced to rubble, right?"

Briefly looking back to his Pokémon with a sharp glare that signaled them to stop working, Paul of course agreed to this. "It's about time," he muttered in complaint; he did well to hide his eagerness to vent out some frustration on his brother.

As usual, Reggie endured his brother's rudeness, which was rather harmless compared to how nasty he could be whenever he was in a bad mood. "Need a few minutes to rest up before we begin?" he asked. True to his big brother role, of course Reggie thought Paul needed it. Yet he remained unsurprised when he heard the response.

"No, let's not put this off any longer," Paul insisted, standing up and giving his sibling a hard stare. "What kind of battle?"

Unconvinced of Paul's claims, Reggie decided to play it safe. "Let's start small and work our way up," he suggested. "We can both substitute; might as well have you trained with that as a constant since Ash will be allowed to substitute when you two battle…"

"Obviously," Paul agreed, looking back to his Pokémon. "How many?"

"Three-on-three should do for now," Reggie assumed, taking out all of his Pokéballs and recalling each one of them. He wanted to make his three choices a surprise for Paul; the least he could do since Paul already knew what his full team was. The younger brother did the same for that precise reason as well.

Reggie nodded in approval at this, looking forward to what would be their first battle in a very long time. "I'll go first," he offered, tossing his first Pokéball. "Swalot, let's get to it…!"

Paul stared at Reggie's first choice… the Poison Bag Pokémon. Not exactly Reggie's strongest in normal circumstances, but unlike his father, Reggie saw nothing wrong with going easy on his brother during a battle… at least for the warm-up rounds.

So Reggie was starting off with a Poison-type… after the loss against Brandon yesterday that Paul would have great difficulty in living down from this day on, he wanted to make a strong impression against his brother right from the beginning. Unfortunately, he no longer had Nidoking on hand to devastate Swalot with Earth Power, and he hadn't yet mastered any Ground-type moves with Torterra despite that being its secondary type. Paul decided he would rectify this in the future; a move like Earthquake in particular used by a Torterra could cause colossal damage even against Pokémon that weren't weak to it.

Who did that leave? Paul could only choose three, and without a mastered Ground-type move, Paul's Torterra would only by a liability against Swalot due to its lack of resistance to Poison-type moves (and it didn't help that the Grass-type Frenzy Plant and Giga Drain would do very little against his opponent, either). The only other type that could cripple Swalot's was the Psychic-type, and beyond Electabuzz's Light Screen (which wasn't even an offensive attack), _none_ of Paul's Pokémon knew of any such attacks.

Swalot's presence seemed to be sending a subliminal message to Paul: he couldn't simply overpower this Pokémon with super-effective attacks, and its exceptional defensive abilities would prove to be difficult in simply beating the giant violet blob down. Paul knew in this situation, he had to do what he did best: pinpoint his opponent's weaknesses and strike them without relent. Then it was just a matter of figuring out which Pokémon of Paul's was best suited for exploiting the area where Swalot fell short: its speed. Only then did Paul have the perfect Pokémon in mind: a hard-hitter with unrivaled speed (or at least unrivaled amongst the Pokémon for this battle)… the one who won him the Mine Badge weeks ago…

"Weavile, stand by for battle!"

* * *

"Gengar, allons-y!"

Meanwhile, the Gym Battle between Fantina and Conway had commenced, with Barry as Conway's self-appointed coach. It was at this point that Conway started to have serious regrets about allowing Barry to accompany him; the "cheerleading" Barry had in mind would only serve as a distraction that couldn't afford to be dealt with at this time. No, Conway had to force himself to completely tune it out and direct his attention only to Fantina and her Pokémon.

Gengar was a popular choice for many Ghost-type enthusiasts, and with good reason. The potency of its special attacks could result in a one-hit KO if the opponent was unprepared. Conway suspected Fantina may very well be a trainer whose preferences lean towards strategies with special attacks, just like him. Conway never really faced an opponent who had a battling style that similar to his… whether this was to his advantage or disadvantage remained to be seen.

Now it was finally time to choose who Gengar would face. Conway planned on saving Lickilicky for last for various reasons, so it came down to two prospective choices. Gengar was both a Ghost and Poison-type – and Conway expected there may be at least one dual-type Poison on Fantina's team due to the fact that the Gengar evolution line was fairly common in most regions, including Sinnoh. Seeing Gengar slightly hovering above the floor reminded Conway of its ability: Levitate. Ground-type attacks would be useless against it, but thankfully he wasn't banking on that chance. But in the event that Fantina's Gengar had some sort of Poison-type move to cripple his Pokémon, Conway decided to play it safe and erase the poison factor completely.

"I call upon _you_, Aggron…!"

There was a downside to this. While Aggron's defense was insanely high, its special defense paled in comparison. This scenario somewhat resembled Conway's choosing of Aggron first during his battle with Maylene, even though Aggron had a double-weakness to Fighting-type moves. Hopefully this wouldn't be the case here, but how long Aggron would last against Gengar would rely solely on the move set the opponent possessed.

With both Pokémon selected, the Hearthome Gym referee made his call. "The first move goes to the challenger," he said, gesturing to Conway. "Battle begin…!"

"I think we'll play it safe for now," Conway decided. If Fantina indeed have mostly special attacks, this move of his wouldn't do much to help him, but at least it would serve as an opportunity to scout her Gengar's moves. That way, he could plan ahead to counter it the next round, as Conway often handled his battles: sheer and thorough pre-planning. "Iron Defense!"

Fantina nodded, seemingly in approval of her challenger's decision here. "Gengar, Shadow Punch, si vous s'il vous plaît!" As she issue her command, the Gym Leader did a fancy twirl, as she often did while engaged in a traditional battle. Her double-life as a Coordinator bled through her style in every scenario, it seemed.

Gengar landed a direct hit on Aggron, but Conway's Pokémon had no problem enduring the blow; Shadow Punch was a physical attack, and as such Iron Defense was able to nerf it a bit. Aside from that, Ghost-type moves weren't very effective on Steel-types like Aggron. It was a pleasant surprise for Conway, but he knew better than to relax this early on in the battle.

"You're never gonna beat her if you just stand there!" Barry shouted at Conway. "Attack, attack, attack!"

Conway actually mumbled unintelligible words quietly to himself, as Barry proved to be harder to ignore than a stalking Chatot. Still, Barry was actually right. This was the time to strike. "Alright, then. Aggron, Iron Tail!"

Aggron turned itself around to swing its hefty tail to smack Gengar what good, but…

"Dodge it, quickly!"

Gengar's impressive speed was something Conway had overlooked a bit. As a result, his first strike was a total miss. He had to act quickly, as this left his Pokémon vulnerable…

"Now, Night Shade; aussitôt!" Fantina commanded, pirouetting in tandem with her focus on the battle.

Conway winced as he witnessed Gengar's eye's glow red, firing a crimson beam of grim, ghoulish power straight at Aggron. The Iron Armor Pokémon was far too slow and too big of a target to effectively dodge this attack. Night Shade's power was directly connected to the inner strength of its user. Gengar was one of Fantina's strongest Pokémon, so it was a rather painful blow for Aggron to take – especially since its Iron Defense wouldn't buffer this attack.

"Aw man, he's totally blowing it out there," Barry muttered to himself. "I knew I should have gone first…"

Frightful as the sight was, Conway settled himself and looked straight at his opponent. Aggron was not in good shape, but still able to battle. This was the time he would employ a strategy he used against Maylene that completely took her off-guard, only with a little twist this time…

"Keep it together, Aggron," Conway calmly pleaded. "Now, Payback!"

With Aggron's low speed, it worked very well with attacks made for slow Pokémon. It had sent a Machoke flying almost a mile away with Counter in the past; with Payback, its power doubled if the opponent struck first. Along with that boost, Payback was a menacing Dark-type attack, which dealt critical damage to Gengar. Similar to the incident in Conway's first Gym Battle, Payback was so overwhelmingly powerful that it sent Gengar straight into the wall of the arena close to where Fantina stood.

"Sacrebleu," the Gym Leader muttered, wide-eyed as she got a good look of how devastating that Payback attack really was; the force of the blast actually made a hole in the wall. Unlike most Gyms, Hearthome's battle arena was just as dark and eerie as the rest of her facility, with the same stained-glass windows and cathedral-styled walls made of solid stone, rather than the typical steel that many Gyms had. The stone was easily shattered by Aggron's attack, thus how the steep hole in the wall was formed.

"I can't believe it," Barry said in awe, also in shock of how powerful Conway could be when he actually fought back. "He was holding back on me this whole time…?"

Fantina was concerned for Gengar's wellbeing now when it didn't immediately come out from the hole it was forced in. "Gengar, are you alright? Can you give us a sign t'at you can still battle…?"

Hearing its trainer's voice prompted Gengar to crawl out of its hole. It was battered and worn out from that one single attack, but that wasn't enough to take it out.

"Gengar is still able to battle!" the referee confirmed. "So this battle continues!"

Conway was a bit flustered that Gengar was still able to move after such a devastating attack. However, that was the only thing it was hit with so far; Aggron, on the other hand, had taken a lot of damage. When Aggron was in the red, Conway knew it was time to use his last resort. "Outrage; let's go!"

Fantina's expressions hardened as she watched the giant steel beast charge towards her Gengar. She knew what this attack was all about, and if she were to let it play out its course, she would be unable to strike Conway with her ultimate strategy.

Before Aggron could make contact (not much of a stretch, given how slow Aggron was), Fantina called out Gengar's next move. "Hypnosis!"

Upon hearing that dreaded word, Barry grasped at his hair in frustration, having spasms galore in his seat. "Argh, I knew it! I knew she'd use that move! There's no way that nerd can counter Hypnosis; it's light's out for Aggron!"

"That's…!" Conway was flabbergasted, watching Gengar latch itself to Aggron's face, somehow having the power to hold it in place to cancel out its Outrage onslaught. Gengar locked eyes with Aggron and the former's began to glow. Aggron found itself utterly powerless to resist, and eventually was lulled into a deep sleep. "Argh… I can't believe it; I _never_ expected this…" He felt rather ashamed for not thinking of this potential threat.

"And now, it's time for la grande finale!" Fantina announced, raising both arms in the air victoriously. "Gengar, use Focus Blast!"

Not good; not good at _all_. Focus Blast would no doubt put an end to Aggron for sure, and in its sleeping state there was no hope for evasion. Conway saw only one way out of this. "Aggron, return!"

Just before Focus Blast reached its target, the sleeping Aggron was pulled back into its Pokéball with the red beam of light. Focus Blast collided with the floor instead, leaving a smoldering crater in its wake. That was too close of a call there; Conway wasn't even sure why he followed his gut instinct before thinking about it in recalling Aggron, as it had already sustained so much damage at this point. Would it really be worth calling out later in the battle? Chalk it up to Conway's phobia – that Gengar was downright _terrifying_; its constant evil, smirking expression was as ever-present as Paul's constant scowling face.

But when it came right down to it, Conway was allowed to make exchanges in Gym Battles, whereas the Gym Leaders could not. It just seemed like a good time to make use of that privilege.

This particular tactical decision intrigued Fantina. "Is t'at fear I see in your eyes, Colin?" she curtly taunted. "Your tactics are, 'ow we say, imprévisibles. But was it your strategy, or perhaps your instinct which t'rew my Gengar into my wall?"

It was then that Conway realized there was a strategical advantage to his situation after all. Aggron may be difficult to make good use of for the rest of the battle, but due to the Iron Armor Pokémon's endurance, Conway had bared witness to Gengar's full battling move set. A weird rule to have; that being that at least Gym Leaders were restricted to four moves per Pokémon, but in hindsight there was some logic to it. Several moves required intense and _consistent_ practice to master and maintain their skill with said attacks. Going beyond four had a tendency to overload a Pokémon's memory, and as a result all of its moves would dwindle down to mediocre power at best. To put it simply, no Pokémon (perhaps short of a legend) could perfectly master every move it could potentially learn. _Some_ balance had to be maintained, so even average Pokémon Trainers, Coordinators, et cetera utilized the practice of narrowing down their Pokémon's move set to just four. The moves could of course change over time, but settling on four main attacks proved to best utilize a Pokémon's potential.

The relevance of the four-move limit in this situation? Conway had witnessed approximately four moves from Gengar as it battled Aggron: Shadow Punch, Night Shade, Hypnosis, and Focus Blast in that order. Of course, Conway had also shown Fantina Aggron's four moves: Iron Tail, Iron Defense, Payback, and Outrage… the latter was most disappointing for Conway. Against Gym Leaders, he had yet been able make full use of Outrage's power before a Gym Leader could cancel it out (like Fantina had) or take Aggron down before it could even be utilized (as Maylene's Machoke did). In spite of this, Conway still had the upper-hand because of his ability to switch out his Pokémon. Gengar had sustained considerable damage now, and Conway knew what moves precisely to expect. It was a pity he had no Pokémon with the Insomnia ability or taught his team a move that would turn the sleep status effect against Fantina's team, but even without those buffers, Conway became a bit more confident in his ability to take Gengar down.

"A little of column A, and a little of column B," Conway finally answered, though this phrase was not one the foreign Fantina was familiar with. Upon seeing her inquisitive expressions, Conway was nice enough to clarify. "Admittedly there was _some_ improvisation involved, but I assure you, Madame… my strategy is still in play."

Fantina smirked at that statement. "Well, t'en, would tu be so kind as to present to me your next Pokémon, jeune homme?"

"With pleasure," Conway conceded with a bow, taking out his next Pokéball.

Barry couldn't help but bite his fingernails in anticipation for the second round. "Unless that geek's got something that can resist sleeping, he's outta luck. And what's the deal with those two being so _formal_ and speaking in that alien language, anyway? I knew there was something weird about that guy…"

These comments were _not_ out of Conway's hearing range. After all, Barry insisted on being in close proximity to his companion for moral support… of course, so far he hadn't been doing his job very well. While the intellectual one of the duo did try to filter out Barry's nonsense, he did take note of the few important things that were said out loud. Barry _had_ battled Fantina before, so if nothing else, he'd know what he was talking about when it came to her battling style. It was a stretch, but the way Barry emphasized the threat of all of Conway's Pokémon being put to sleep led Conway to believe that, perhaps, Gengar wasn't the only one with Hypnosis.

This… would without a doubt be the biggest hurdle in defeating Fantina beyond Conway's discomfort with ghosts. The longer Gengar stuck around, the more Conway felt on edge. He'd done some pretty extensive research on Gengar in the past since it was such a popular Pokémon for trainers to use. Learning about Gengar's mischievous (and even malicious) nature made the renegade trainer dread the day he'd come face-to-face with one… and no amount of preparation for this battle could make Conway any less intimidated by the mere presence of Gengar.

It was time to take it down.

"Then let us continue!" Conway announced, throwing out his next Pokéball. "Slowking… appear!"

Conway's most trusted partner, the Royal Pokémon, had been sent out to the field. This was a good thing, as this dueling of dual-types was a double-edged sword; only the most qualified Pokémon were suitable for these scenarios. Slowking had a weakness to Ghost-type moves, but thanks to Gengar's partial Poison-type, it was vulnerable to Psychic-type attacks… something Slowking was very skilled at.

"An interesting choice, indeed," Fantina noted with a smile. "But we shall see who the superior is!"

"We'll see in a moment," Conway assured before looking to Slowking. "Now, Slowking… you'd best get this out of the way now; use Light Screen!"

Fantina and Gengar watched on as Slowking encased itself in a blinding box of light. It disappeared soon after, and Fantina couldn't help but look a little miffed. She knew of Light Screen's effect: it nerfed all _special_ attacks and would remain in effect even when Conway switched out Pokémon. _This_ was the solid defense Conway needed all this time.

"I see you 'ave many tricks up your sleeve, Colin," Fantina admitted. "Using Light Screen… very clever. But your Iron Defense will no longer 'old! Gengar, Shadow Punch!"

Gengar was no less fearsome to Conway, but it was massively reassuring that Fantina looked obviously backed into a corner here. As Gengar rushed forward with its charged-up fists, about to launch an attack, Conway knew it was nigh on impossible to dodge an attack that always landed a hit. Except for…

"Protect!"

Shadow Punch slammed into the barrier, but was unable to break it. Slowking made it out of that predicament unscathed, and Conway sighed a breath of relief while Fantina shook her head rapidly in horror.

"Oh, you naughty, naughty boy! You 'ave your own bag of tricks…!" Fantina cried out.

"Please accept my sincere apologies, Fantina," Conway requested with a smirk. "But this is the end of the line. Since your Gengar looks to be about done here…"

"Oui?" Fantina said, blinking in confusion. "And t'at means…?"

Conway pointed directly at Gengar, signaling his Pokémon to attack. "Slowking, it's time for Brine!"

"T'is will not do!" Fantina denied, losing a bit of her cool for certain now. "Gengar, Night Shade! Et dépêchez-vous!"

This prompted a smug smirk from Conway as he quietly laughed to himself. "That's right, Fantina; fall right into the trap…" he muttered quietly to himself. His strong mental connection with Slowking allowed him to silently signal his Pokémon to wait for Night Shade to hit first; sure, it was a powerful and effective attack against Slowking, but Light Screen cut down the potential damage considerably and gave the team the opening needed to take Gengar out once and for all. After the hit connected – Light Screen showing up briefly to display its buffering of the blow – Slowking unleashed a powerful stream of water coming up from under it, propelling the Royal Pokémon straight up into the air as the trail of water followed. Since Gengar was not too far away, it was no problem for Slowking to ride the water straight towards its target and collide into it with full force.

Slowking's girth and the power behind Brine were too much for Fantina's Gengar to handle in its present state. After the water receded, the Shadow Pokémon was on the ground… not about to get back up.

"Gengar is unable to battle!" the referee called. "Slowking is the winner!"

"_Nooooo…!"_

Conway blinked; his focus from the battle scene disrupted with Fantina's wail of defeat. She grasped at her hair, shaking in horror… the Gym Leader was acting quite overly-dramatic over her loss, which was surprising for Conway to witness after experiencing her mature and refined nature. This was the kind of reaction he'd expect out of _Barry_; not Fantina.

Speaking of Barry, he looked on dumbfounded at the scene that unfolded before him. "Switching out… argh, why didn't I think of that?" he grumbled (relatively quietly, for him at least) to himself before he turned his attention to Conway. "What was up with that, huh? That shouldn't have totally blown Gengar away like that; you must have cheated!"

"Ah, the sweet sound of envy," Conway said with an endeared sigh, relishing in his victory. "Barry, do you know anything of how Brine actually works?"

"It's gotta be something you made up!" Barry deduced. "That looked like _nothing_ compared to an attack like Hydro Cannon; I would know!"

Oddly enough, it was then that Conway realized he had never actually seen Barry's first Pokémon; only the three that were used in the battle that occurred the day they met. He hadn't asked Barry about his strongest Pokémon either, but the mere mention of Hydro Cannon and Barry being familiar with it seemed to insinuate very strongly that Barry started out with a Piplup. Barry was from Sinnoh and only regional starter Water-type Pokémon could learn Hydro Cannon, so Conway found it hard to believe that it could just be a coincidence.

But that would be another inquiry for another time; Conway needed to school Barry on what Brine was all about. He was determined to make sure _some_ of this knowledge being instilled in his friend's head would stick… somehow. "Well, you're correct that it isn't as powerful as Hydro Cannon," Conway admitted. "But its maximum power is almost ridiculous despite that. However, the only way to make Brine this powerful is to wear your opponent down. The weaker your opponent, the stronger Brine becomes. Gengar had taken a beating from Aggron's attacks and exhausted itself trying to penetrate Slowking's defenses. In Gengar's state, and judging from how much water Slowking could conjure up for the attack, I'd say Brine's power was doubled as a result, and that was enough to take Gengar down."

Barry was awestruck at the concept of such an attack. It would be perfect for his melee battling style. "And you just kept that all to yourself?" Barry barked at Conway, even _more_ jealous now. "Not a chance! You're teaching me that attack once this is all over!"

"We'll see," Conway noncommittally answered, smiling all the while. It was actually Crasher Wake who displayed this move during their own battle, and afterwards Conway was naturally interested in adopting this technique. So, the Pastoria Gym Leader was more than happy to oblige, as he greatly enjoyed challengers who sought his knowledge, even if they had defeated him. Most challengers would be arrogant and walk off without a second thought after receiving their Gym Badge, but not Conway. His dream to learn everything he possibly could was still alive, as it was a useful aspiration to have in Conway's new goal to defeat Saturn.

"Indeed, t'at strategy was like not'ing I 'ave ever seen before," Fantina complimented, having calmed down now. She recalled the unconscious Gengar back into its Pokéball and let out a warm smile. "Now, mon cher, it is time to rest. You 'ave done well."

After tucking the Pokéball away, Fantina looked to her opponent. She really meant what she said to Gengar, because she was not oblivious to the plain-as-day fear on Conway's face that was present for much of their first round. That and his nervous demeanor once he was let into the Hearthome Gym were telling signs for the Gym Leader. Even if she was down one Pokémon, Conway was only barely ahead of her considering the fact that his Aggron was hanging on by a thread, and Slowking had at least taken _some_ damage before Gengar went down. Now that Fantina officially suspected that Conway had something of a phobia involving her specialty, she knew it was her duty as Gym Leader to shape him up. From what she had seen, Conway was a spectacularly unique battler; she would be ashamed to see someone like him fall to a mere phobia in the Sinnoh League – naturally she assumed he would be competing there if he was here for her Relic Badge.

Now it was time for round two. Fantina pulled another Pokéball out, pausing a moment to have her last casual words with Conway before the next battle began. "I 'ope you continue to impress 'ere, Colin," she said sincerely. "If you are to let your fears control you even now, I will make sure you do not win this match. Est-ce clair?"

Conway couldn't help but gulp at that statement. Had he really been too obvious about his discomfort with the ghosts and the atmosphere? His calm smugness faded away into a hardened expression, showing that he took what Fantina said seriously. "I understand," he said, not bothering to lie about how he was feeling right now. "And I'm ready."

Barry shook his fist as he stood up from his seat, leaning over towards the scene. "You'd better not screw up here, Conway! Get cocky and I'll fine you a million!"

There was nothing Conway could think of to respond to that; he was busy trying too hard to not crack a smile at what his companion said, and failing in doing so. Still, Conway retained self-control, for Fantina threw her second Pokéball to unleash her challenger's next opponent.

"Mismagius, allons-y…!"

* * *

"Time to end this! Swalot, Spit Up!"

"Oh no…!" Paul exclaimed, figuring his gentle-natured brother would have used those three turns of Stockpile to heal the Poison Bag Pokémon. It had been an odd battle, as Swalot mainly remained on the defensive side while Weavile slashed, sliced, and iced its opponent. Weavile may have redeemed itself to Paul during the battle against Byron, but it never was the true shining star in any iteration of Paul's team. It was caught over a year ago when Paul traveled through Johto in the Ice Path and was kept due to its nigh unmatchable speed and exceptional skills in the area of physical offense. However, Paul's strategy often centered on his Pokémon being able to take hits throughout the battle, and Weavile was severely lacking in durability. That wasn't really this particular Weavile's fault – that was the nature of the species; something Conway tried to get Paul to understand back when they reunited on the way to Canalave City. At least it seemed Paul acknowledged that now; otherwise Weavile likely would have been released long ago.

The colossal cyan-colored beam of light that shot out from Swalot's mouth proved to be hard to dodge, even for a speed demon like Weavile. It had already exhausted itself by attacking relentlessly to chip away at Swalot's defenses despite being set back a step each time it used Stockpile. This wasn't a particularly smart thing to do, especially when Weavile was poisoned by Sludge Bomb in the interim. It was easy for Reggie to see that Paul wasn't really thinking clearly during this battle. The way Weavile attacked seemed to mirror what Paul wished _he_ could do right now. Even after a good night's sleep and a civil talk with his father earlier this morning, Paul was still frustrated… but it was understandable.

There was so much on Paul's mind – so many worries and concerns – involving not just himself and his life-threatening revelation that still remained a secret to everyone else, but now about his family's future in regards to Brandon's situation, the battle from yesterday that completely broke Paul's resolve… which was probably why Paul's battling was so sub-par right now, actually. But in addition to all that, thanks to Reggie inflicting guilt upon him yesterday, Paul even worried about what became of Conway. Maylene, one of the few who knew the truth, even tried to bring it up to Paul during one of their brief conversations while Paul was making his team exchanges yesterday (despite Conway's request to not tell Paul the truth; Maylene believed there was a connection between those two despite them not being aware of it, and thusly Paul deserved to know). But the nature of yesterday's events prevented that from happening, of course. Maylene was determined to get the news through to both brothers the next time she got the chance.

On top of all _that_, Ash had suddenly become a threat. Both Paul and Reggie were still overcome with disbelief that a naïve boy from the smallest town in the Kanto region had achieved not just the Frontier Symbol they vied for, but the notoriety of being one of the few to defeat their father. Given Ash's demeanor, the brothers wouldn't have come to that conclusion on their own in a million years. For Paul especially, this bothered him deeply. Since the day he met that simple-minded boy and his intriguing Pikachu that knew Volt Tackle, Paul was repulsed by him simply because his demeanor was _exactly_ like his brother's back in the day. Only Ash was considerably luckier; he was an only child, so he had no burden to bear in the form of raising a toddler of a sibling all the way to reaching maturity. While Ash's recollection of his father was barely there and hadn't seen his face in many years, it wasn't something that seemed to bother him too much… and besides that, he had a loving and _living_ mother to raise him and still watch over him to this day, even from a great distance (much like how Reggie was to Paul in the present day once he started his journey). Delia Ketchum's warm and caring nature shined brightly through her son… frankly, it was difficult for Paul to comprehend him. Motherly influence was such an alien concept to one who had no real memories of his own mother, no other female relatives (much as Reggie came off as one at times), and no real female acquaintances. It was honestly a stretch to count Dawn despite the amount of times they had crossed paths (though that was due to her status as Ash's traveling partner – wherever he went, she and Brock followed); Paul couldn't even remember her name half the time, even when dealing with Conway's near-constant obsessive ramblings about her for nearly a month. Even though Ash meant well, pretty much every thing about him put Paul on edge.

As he watched his Weavile get smacked with Swalot's attack, gaping at the sight of Weavile skidding several hundred feet against the snow and dirt due to the sheer force of the attack until it finally collided with a tree. That would bring about one mighty concussion that Weavile would be feeling until it was healed up; until then, it was simply rendered unconscious. Paul was at a loss for words when the match was lost; in his mind, there was an image of Ash doing something like this to Paul's team. His rival completely flattened them all, seemingly effortless in doing so just as it appeared to be with Reggie. Back in reality, the elder brother was genuinely surprised by what happened. He knew Weavile's defenses were nothing to brag about, but this was ridiculous. Never had Reggie seen Paul so completely off his game before. It was then he wondered if Paul needed more time to cope with everything before getting into this… inconvenient as it would be, given the limited time they had before his brother and Ash would face off at Lake Acuity.

"You did… good, Paul," Reggie clumsily reassured, but even he knew he was coming off as incredibly patronizing by saying something like that. He immediately regretted it, but there was no way to take it back now.

"Don't lie to me," Paul calmly replied, taking out a Pokéball. "I know a pathetic performance when I see one." Even if it was his own… _especially_ if it was his own.

Reggie struggled to keep up that fake smile of his, scratching the back of his head as he was clearly uncomfortable with confronting Paul at a time like this. Tasks like these were better suited to Brandon… but once again, work came before his children. He recalled Swalot back into its Pokéball shortly after Paul did the same for his fallen Weavile. However difficult it was, Reggie knew he had to be more honest and direct with Paul if this training was to be successful and effective a little over a week from now.

"Are you sure you're feeling okay?" Reggie asked out of genuine concern. "We can start this up again later if you aren't feeling up to it now…"

Paul knew he'd be asked this question. That was something he could always be sure of: Reggie asking if he was alright… because Paul never _seemed_ alright. He never even seemed happy, and he certainly _wasn't_ right now. Quite the opposite… he was depressed, directionless, and diseased. Even with Brandon's assurance that they would battle again, Paul still had room for doubt. When it all became too much, Paul couldn't simply crumble under the pressure this time; not with Reggie right in front of him. He had to find something to focus on with great intensity, and shove his woes to the back of his mind. It was going to be very difficult for Paul to not make Reggie suspicious of his illness, and there was a good chance of Brandon catching on as well; his intuitive nature was indicative enough to be acknowledged as a threat. It was true Brandon already sensed something off about his youngest son, but it was faint and subtle, and the Pyramid King presently had no clue as to what it could be. Reggie was, more or less, in the same boat. Perhaps a bit more concerned because he wondered if Paul was holding back on any details in regards to how he and Conway split up. Paul was pretty thorough about his side of the story, though one detail he did skip over was the specifics in how he saved Conway's life, which led to his cracked ribs. There was no need to make Reggie fuss over that, and in the event that he or Brandon might catch on once they started seeing the hospital bills, Paul at least had his ribcage injury to use as a scapegoat.

"I'm fine," Paul stubbornly assured, and sadly Reggie expected that sort of answer. "We shouldn't be wasting the time we have left; besides that, our match was a three-on-three… we've only finished one round."

Reggie didn't want to argue with him; Paul was right that squandering time was the last thing they needed to be doing. Brandon wouldn't approve of that, either. "I just wanted to be sure," he attempted to reason. "I don't want to be too hard on you, but… that battle we just had… it didn't seem like your kind of battle."

"Sugarcoat it a little more, why don't you?" Paul spat back at his brother, now beyond agitated that Reggie was still acting like this. "I know how pathetic my performance was; I know it wasn't just Weavile. I wasn't thinking; I wasn't focusing on the battle. I foolishly underestimated you and Swalot; I _assumed_ you would be holding back the way you always did in the past. I had no strategy whatsoever in mind; I just made Weavile dive in head-first like some idiotic _beginner_ would do. I failed to apply the lesson the old man taught me yesterday and I let my emotions control me during the battle; I was _weak_. And I obviously missed the point of what you said to me earlier… and it's _ignorant_ of me to just ignore your advice when you've been working just as hard to get stronger as I've been."

Well, Paul trumped Reggie there in the criticism department. Reggie was too flabbergasted to speak back; he couldn't imagine being so horrifically _blunt_.

"_That_ is what you need to be saying to me right now," Paul criticized, not nearly as nice about pointing out his brother's faults. "Because I can't even tell what's going to become of you…" He sounded almost upset about that, which prompted Reggie to inquire.

"What are you talking about?" Reggie quietly asked, still in a gentle tone. "This isn't about me…"

"_Yes it is_," Paul insisted, raising his voice. "We're both in this to beat our old man, aren't we? You promised you wouldn't flake out again. I won't accept that from you; not when you're this powerful!"

Reggie was taken aback by the sudden almost-compliment he received. Him… powerful? Well, he had noticed a steep incline in the performance of his Pokémon, but that was only after his little multi-day adventure in the Snowpoint suburbs.

"I guess I need to clear some things up," Reggie admitted, looking down at the snow. "I have been training hard with my Pokémon, but I didn't notice the difference in our power until recently… after I helped clear out mountains of snowdrifts blocking off a residential area of Snowpoint City from the rest of the world." Paul was definitely paying attention by now. "Our hard labor and utilizing my Pokémon's abilities to help those people in a real-life crisis is what made the difference, I think."

"So that's why you were having us do all of our old man's cleanup duty today," Paul realized. "You figured if my Pokémon participate in this, that I'd experience the same increase in power that your team did."

Reggie nodded. "It isn't exactly the same as what I did, but the task at hand is just as difficult… more than difficult, I'd say."

"I've never seen your Swalot unleash so much power before," Paul noted. "And it's not even your strongest Pokémon. Maybe you're right…" He managed to look his brother in the eye before making a certain request. "Then show me the two who improved the most for the rest of this battle. I believed I was at least on par with you by now in terms of my team's collective strength. If what you said is true…"

"… Then we aren't nearly as even as you think we are," Reggie solemnly finished for him. He didn't want to acknowledge this fact, much less brag about it. But lying to Paul or glossing over his weaknesses wasn't going to help his little brother get any stronger. Only the truth could set them free.

It had been easy for Paul to assume that Reggie had gotten beyond rusty after four years with very little to no practice… and it was easier to believe that it would be just a matter of time before Paul could make his team surpass Reggie's in power at this stage in his life. Was the gap between their levels still as wide as it had been from the beginning? Despite Reggie swearing to close the book on defeating Brandon this time around, his demeanor hardly changed… at least on the outside. He was still the optimistic, peaceful and fun-loving big brother that people couldn't believe was related to Paul. And even though Paul always had more determination to win a competition, a stronger fighting spirit, and the inclination to be violent if necessary… all these things Reggie lacked, yet Reggie remained to be the stronger brother in almost every sense of the word. Reggie's Pokémon were stronger than Paul's; he was physically stronger, faster, and more enduring than his little brother as well. He was even emotionally stronger than Paul, and the actions that transpired yesterday during the battle with Brandon proved that. The way the battle went about upset Reggie just as much as it did Paul, but where Paul essentially broke down into virtually nothingness - barely hanging on by a thread – no one could really tell that Reggie had been anything but mildly disappointed during and after that battle.

Unsurprisingly, Paul deeply resented Reggie because of this; he was definitely not unaware of his brother's superiority to him in _everything_… or at least everything that mattered to him. But Paul mostly kept his envy to himself; he really had no room for the petty jealousy when Reggie was the only reliable member of his family. This was the first time in a long while that Paul had felt the feelings of envy burn within him… not only was he likely not on par with Reggie at all, but the usually-humble Reggie himself was not denying that? Yet another oncoming setback… how many did this make, now?

Paul was feeling buried under the problems and the pressure that threatened to consume him. More and more, Paul felt himself to be absolutely useless. If he was this weak, there was much reasonable doubt of achieving a status where he could continue Brandon's legacy in the future. Reggie would undoubtedly qualify for that with relative ease if only he had the burning drive that Paul possessed.

But then something struck Paul just then…

If he was doomed to be the inferior brother no matter what, then it very well could be virtually impossible for him to match Brandon's strength, surpass him, and carry on the legacy as he wished to do – in the most disrespectful way he could, of course, but it was obvious by now that Paul couldn't possibly hate his father completely if he cared this much about how Brandon was going to pass the torch once it was time for him to retire. The point was, however, that even after four years of retirement, Reggie's skill still held out against the more determined Paul's; it became apparent that _Reggie_ was more befitting of the role of Brandon's successor than Paul for the raw skill alone.

That was leaving out the fact that Paul was very likely to die much sooner than his brother, which was the biggest problem that made Paul doubt that he'd achieve the goal he had set for himself. Even if he succeeded, the victory would be short-lived no matter how one looked at the situation. Paul just couldn't be depended on for becoming the brighter future Brandon hoped for – this position was made for Reggie and Reggie alone. But Reggie rejected it years ago; how would he feel about having to abandon his own dreams to make up for his brother's shortcomings?

It was one of the biggest reasons why Paul couldn't bring himself to confess his ill state to Reggie. Once he died, the future of the family would entirely be in Reggie's hands, and the Pokémon Breeder was selfless enough to sacrifice his happiness for what he'd perceive as a greater good. Once Reggie was made aware of his little brother's imminent demise, everything would change, and Paul was uncertain which direction his life would be going from that moment on. He could be forcibly kept in the house, ending his journey and his goals so the paranoid Reggie would overdo taking care of him and making sure Paul lived as long as possible. No matter how much of a waste it would end up being, it was easy to see Reggie going that route.

But it could also go the other route: Paul being allowed to do as he pleased as many terminally ill children were allowed to do, given the short time they had left to live. But Paul didn't want to be coddled with benefits he otherwise didn't deserve, such as the wish-making foundations… and he certainly didn't want to be labeled by his condition, which most trainers surely would. It would be hard for them _not_ to; how could they simply ignore the terminal illness? Naturally, the last thing Paul wanted was to be reminded of his condition every single day for the rest of his life; his body did a thorough enough job of that already. He didn't need the entire world dwelling on it.

It wouldn't be right to keep his family in the dark indefinitely; Paul knew that much. But he could feel this wasn't the right time. Right now, there was another matter he wanted to focus on: the remainder of this three-on-three with Reggie. If Reggie truly was better qualified to assume the role of the Pyramid King's successor, Paul wanted his brother to be happy when that time came. As happy as he could be once Paul passed on, anyway… but what the younger brother wanted to do right now was re-ignite the fighting spirit Reggie once had. No one could deny it existed in some form; not even Reggie himself. If Paul could somehow restore Reggie to his former glory, perhaps he wouldn't be so miserable… maybe he would even enjoy battling again. It was the least Paul could do for his brother, and right now with his own aspirations being questioned, this was an ideal area for Paul to focus on.

"We'll see how far apart we are," Paul finally said, assuring his brother that he was still ready to go despite the fact that there was a lot on his mind. Far too much on his mind… battling made him feel a little better, at least. "Come on; let's get back to it."

Reggie nodded, not wanting to deny Paul when he was this determined. He remembered when he battled Maylene, how she told him that his level of improvement would show if she could be defeated. Their battle resulted in a No Contest thanks to unforeseen circumstances, but only now was Reggie reminded that he really did owe Maylene a rematch when he got back home. He applied that experience now in order to determine just how far Paul had come, and what his chances were against Ash when it came time for them to battle. Even if Paul had routinely defeated Ash or at least resulted in a draw for the most part, even Reggie wondered if Ash's true potential had not yet surfaced… and perhaps it might soon. Reggie didn't want a repeat of the battle with Brandon; it was his job to make sure Paul went into that battle fully prepared and emotionally stable.

"You're right; let's not waste any more time," Reggie agreed, throwing out the Pokéball containing his next Pokémon. "Let's do this, Staraptor!"

Paul glared up at the sky as the Predator Pokémon soared high into the air upon its release. The parallels between Reggie and Ash grew ever-stronger as Paul remembered his apathy cost him a win against Ash's Staraptor – a freshly evolved one, no less, with Paul's Honchkrow, who had been one of the more reliable members of Paul's team since it was captured in Kanto. Thusly, there was only one choice Paul wished to go with here, and he was thankful Brandon picked it to be used in the battle ahead. "Honchkrow, stand by for battle!"

Reggie smirked a bit as he watched Paul's Honchkrow take flight. "Interesting choice."

"Save your comments for later!" Paul demanded, thrusting an arm forward to signal his Pokémon. "Honchkrow, use Dark Pulse!"

The Big Boss Pokémon charged a sphere of dark energy to fire at its fellow flying opponent…

* * *

At the exact same time, miles and miles away, Conway winced as he watched his Slowking get blown away quite some distance as the Dark Pulse attack from Mismagius landed a critical hit; most unfortunate.

Light Screen was still in play, though heavily battered at this point. Conway knew it would be wise of him to reinforce that wall; without it, Conway's Pokémon would have all been pummeled into submission ages ago, so it was obvious that the chances of winning were slim without that constant buffer to Fantina's special attacks. However, Slowking was quite low on health at this point.

While Mismagius lacked Hypnosis to render Slowking useless, Conway didn't expect it to have Magical Leaf, which dealt super-effective damage on his partial Water-typed Pokémon. On the plus side, Slowking's ability – Own Tempo – came to be extremely useful in this match. It gave Slowking immunity to the confusion status, which Fantina hoped to inflict on this Pokémon via Mismagius' Psybeam attack. Being a foreigner, she was not completely familiar with a Pokémon like Slowking and was overdramatically horrified when she found that she would be unable to confuse it.

For a while it seemed to be a pretty even match, but Conway continued to mostly play on the defensive end. Fantina abused Magical Leaf's usage, as it was an attack that could not miss under normal circumstances. Even Slowking's attempt to reverse the force of the attack back onto Mismagius via Psychic failed. The second round was about to come to an end; someone was bound to fall within the next minute or so.

As always, Barry had been squawking out his commentary for all to hear. "It's almost done for, Conway!" he shouted, which definitely got his companion's attention in the form of pure indignation. Conway had hoped Barry would go the entire battle without using his real name, but apparently that was too much to ask for. He was fortunate that Fantina was much too focused on the battle to notice Barry's slip-up. On the other hand, though, he was the one who got distracted with this, leaving his Slowking wide open for an attack.

"Do not look away from the battlefield!" Fantina advised before issuing an attack. "Mismagius, Magical Leaf!"

Conway looked back to the battle in time to let out a shout of terror as the stream of glowing green leaves made a beeline for his Pokémon. "Light Screen, Light Screen!" he cried in a panic, knowing the barrier would otherwise be diminished by the attack, as well as the rest of Slowking's health.

The glowing box-shaped barrier was reinforced just in time; the leaves smashed into it and Slowking definitely reeled back from the force of the attack, but it remained standing in the aftermath… but just barely.

"Ah, t'at was a close one!" Fantina taunted cheerfully. It was hard to be mad at her; charming as she was. "But t'at will teach you better, monsieur Colin. You cannot let your attention stray; not even for une seconde!"

"Indeed," Conway acknowledged, giving Barry a menacing glare to get his message across. "I will keep that in mind; no minor distraction or _irritation_ can compare to you, _ever._"

Barry knew that glare was meant for him; he hadn't seen Conway look that vicious before, so for once he decided it was best to just back off and let this battle run its course… before he'd get bored after a few minutes and forget about it, of course.

"Merveilleux," Fantina said, clearly pleased. But she quickly got back to business. "But now, it is over for your Slowking! Mismagius, Psywave! Rapidement!"

"Psychic!" Conway called out; there was really no strategy left to be had in this. Someone was going down this turn for certain, but either one would go out with a bang. The psychic attacks collided, sending both Pokémon back from the sheer force of the power put into them.

While Mismagius looked worse for wear when all the dust cleared from the explosion, Slowking was done. It was already face-first into the floor, having nothing left to give for the fight.

"Slowking is unable to battle!" the referee acknowledged. "Mismagius is the winner!"

While Fantina enthusiastically celebrated her victory, Conway walked over to his fallen Slowking and kneeled down, patting it reassuringly on the back. "You fought hard," he said. "And you played your role well; thank you for that. I'll make sure to take Mismagius out for you," he promised as he took out Slowking's Pokéball and recalled it.

Now there was another challenge ahead for Conway: winning a Gym Battle without Slowking. It had won Conway the Cobble Badge and was never rendered unable to battle by any of Crasher Wake's Pokémon. Slowking was Conway's most trusted and most powerful ally. At least it reinforced Light Screen in time, but Conway was now down to Aggron… who was about ready to faint at any moment thanks to the beating it took from Gengar, and Lickilicky, whom Conway had just recently acquired. Fantina still had one more Pokémon after Mismagius to unleash upon him… would it be the one he expected? He'd have to defeat Mismagius to find out.

Though Aggron was in bad shape, its typing was a perfect counter for Mismagius' moves, all of which Conway had witnessed by now. Aggron would resist Dark Pulse, Psywave, and Psybeam; Magical Leaf would merely be neutral. Mismagius would soon fall as well, and it was easy even for Barry to see that.

"Don't let her wicked ways get to you!" Barry hollered. "You've gotta take out that Mismagius right now, you hear?"

Conway merely glared back at Barry, still angry at him for almost blowing his cover. It was okay to do this now, as the battle was at a standstill until he sent out his next Pokémon.

"We are almost evened up, I believe," Fantina pointed out. "So what will you be using to take down my dear Mismagius?"

Conway pulled out the Pokéball of his choice, whispering "I'm counting on you," before tossing it to the field. "Aggron, it's time for revenge…!"

At least it had a bit of time to rest while Slowking was taking care of things. Still, Fantina looked fairly confident about this. "We shall see who has the revenge!" she called out before looking to her Pokémon. "Mismagius, Psybeam!"

"Deflect it with Iron Tail!" Conway ordered, which Aggron did spectacularly. Having a steel outer shell that resisted the psychic power aided greatly in the Iron Armor Pokémon's ability to successfully pull this off. The eerie multicolored waves of the attack were forced into a slingshot motion thanks to the power of Iron Tail, leaving Fantina aghast and Mismagius helpless when Psybeam was swung back. Since Conway was not able to do the same with Mismagius' Magical Leaf attack with Slowking, Fantina assumed he wouldn't try this again, but this turned out to be an error that would cost her greatly.

Mismagius held out against its own attack, taking damage but able to remain afloat and able to battle. However, it began to look disoriented, as the chance of Psybeam inflicting confusion on the target occurred. Fantina howled in horror when she saw her Mismagius floating about in a disjointed manner; she knew what that meant.

"A pity; that would've been the perfect Contest move," Conway said, smiling and shaking his head.

"Contest move…?" Barry repeated to himself, wondering if he heard that right. "Now what would that guy have to do with stuff like that, huh?"

"Do my ears deceive me?" Fantina asked, sounding surprised herself. "Colin, you are also a Coordinator like moi?"

This was yet another example of why Conway had to be careful about what he said. It wouldn't completely compromise his mission, but there was no need to associate his pseudonym with anything he did prior to the events that led to what was happening now.

"I do appreciate the beauty of Contests and they're quite entertaining," Conway admitted. "But no, I've never competed in a Contest before. Interesting as the prospect may be, I've sadly made my decision to stay the course where I am."

"Pitoyable," Fantina said regretfully. "I do recommend the monsieur to give it a try one day; I t'ink you would be a natural."

"Perhaps I'll consider it in the future," Conway replied, though his tone was rather noncommittal about it. It didn't at all reflect how he really felt about the prospect, but in order to reach his own goals, Conway would have no choice but to become a master of deception when it came to interacting with the rest of the world. "Now, about the battle…"

Fantina nodded, getting back into her battling mentality. She almost issued an order, but paused herself when she looked at Mismagius again and remembered it was now in a state of confusion. Not sure how to handle it when Mismagius was close to fainting, Fantina froze and had to rethink how she would go about this.

That gave Conway plenty of time to hurry this match to the end. "Time to tell the mademoiselle it's sayonara!" he declared, fully confident. "Aggron, Outrage!"

It was easy to become startled when an iron-clad titan nearly seven feet tall and eight-hundred pounds came charging right at you. That was the scenario Fantina was faced with, and her overdramatic howl of defeat came a little early from that alone, just before Mismagius was hastily taken out from a mere collision with its opponent.

The force of the colliding was something Aggron used to its advantage – to slide its way back to Conway's side of the battlefield while the dust cleared to reveal the Magical Pokémon completely down and out.

"Mismagius is unable to battle; Aggron is the winner!" said the referee, prompting Conway to let out a sigh of both relief and exhaustion. It may have been overkill to use Outrage on a Pokémon that was so close to unconsciousness already, but Conway was not about to take any chances. Still, Conway was prepared to lose Aggron before Mismagius went down, so he was elated that the odds worked out in his favor here. His ability to do whatever it took to win, including overdoing it, could have been chalked up to Paul's influence. But more than anything, it was the fact that Fantina was doing very well to get Conway backed against a wall. He wasn't handling his phasmophobia as well as he hoped, and there were genuine concerns on his end that this might cost him the battle. He'd been patient for this battle, but the thought of losing and potentially having to wait forever again to claim victory over Fantina once more just wasn't going to cut it. Conway had started so very late in his badge-claiming, so he knew he'd have to speed things up for at least the first bundle of Gym Battles. At least that was one benefit to being at Barry's side: he knew how to get where he needed to be in a hurry. It was very convenient; the only concern was that Barry would be unable to defeat Fantina _again_ here.

Even though Barry didn't have a crippling phobia to his disadvantage, Conway highly doubted that the careless way his partner battled would be enough to defeat Fantina. The last thing Conway wanted was to stick around Hearthome City even longer not because of his failure, but _Barry's_ failure to achieve victory here. He'd have to worry about that a little later, however. There was still one more Pokémon that stood between Conway and his Relic Badge; Aggron lasting long for the next battle was little more than a pipe dream. Ultimate victory depended on the Pokémon he had the least experience with… that in of itself was a little scary, even without the ghosts.

Fantina recalled her Mismagius, thanking it like she did for Gengar before putting the Pokéball away. She picked herself up from this loss rather quickly, putting her hands on her hips as the Gym Leader eyed her challenger. "So it may seem I only 'ave one Pokémon left," she stated. "But you are not faring much better; you must know that."

Conway smirked, nodding at this. "I assume we're still mostly evened up. It really depends on what your last Pokémon is and the level of its power. Saving the best for last isn't a foreign concept for you, is it?"

"Not at all," Fantina assured. "T'is final Pokémon of mine is my pride and joy! It 'as gotten the job done before under disadvantage; it shall do so again."

"We'll see," Conway challenged her. A lot of his cockiness was forced at this point. "I'll be sticking with Aggron again."

"Very well! It is time to face the ultimate challenge!" Fantina shouted, taking out her last Pokéball and throwing it out to the field. "Drifblim, allons-y!"

Unsurprisingly, Fantina's signature Pokémon was indeed the Pokémon represented in her ball gown. That much was comforting to finally confirm, as much of Conway's strategy, particularly on Lickilicky, centered on countering this specific Pokémon.

"So my observational skills are paying off once again," Conway mused to himself. He figured Barry must be writhing with jealousy by now, given how many times Conway reiterated this little lesson at Barry's expense since the day began. "Alright, Aggron! Time for Outrage, take two!"

Drifblim was much larger than Fantina's previous two Pokémon. Despite being mostly air inside, it was a very durable species. Even a powerful Outrage attack couldn't brutally dent it, though it was easy to bump around due to its composition. Still, Fantina was not worried in the least. "And now, the counterattack!" she announced as Drifblim recovered and started flying straight towards Aggron with no hesitation in its movements. It could move around with such ease in its form, so Aggron was soon met with its opponent face to face.

But Conway was not deterred. "Outrage, again!" In close proximity, surely this would be more effective, right? Conway also knew that his Aggron would be confused after this turn out of sheer exhaustion, but the Iron Armor Pokémon didn't have that much left to give anyway…

"Hypnosis!" Fantina called back quickly, smirking. Drifblim was already in position to get its attack through before Aggron could get the Blimp Pokémon out of its face. Another Pokémon with Hypnosis? Conway felt he should've seen that coming. His nerves were struck with the surprise and he couldn't get himself to utter a way for Aggron to counter that. Drifblim's eyes glowed, much like Gengar's did, and being so close face-to-face meant it was out like a light within a couple of seconds.

"Argh! Falling for that again!" Barry complained, scowling all the while. It was irritating to watch Ash's Pokémon fall for this trick one by one in the past, so it was no less grating to see another trainer's strategy get fouled up with this once more. Barry didn't raise too much of a fuss now, since he could at least take a hint that Conway was angry at him now for whatever reason, but there was no way he could stay completely quiet. "That Aggron's done for!"

Conway understood that there was nothing more he could do about this. "End of the line… sorry, Aggron."

"Now, Psychic!" Fantina called out. Even without much effectiveness, Drifblim was able to use Psychic rather well on Aggron; even lifting it from the ground with its power. That was no small feat, and it was a good reason to fear this Drifblim if it was powerful enough to mentally hold up something weighing several hundred pounds.

Drifblim help Aggron high up via Psychic, making Conway more and more fearful of how his last Pokémon would be able to handle this. Fantina knew well what she was doing, too. She could see the terror nearly paralyzing her opponent much like Aggron was held stiff in both sleep and under Psychic's power. This was her way of testing Conway's resolve; whether or not he'd be able to overcome his fears. She finished it off by ordering Drifblim to cease Psychic, unceremoniously dropping Aggron down from nearly a hundred feet off the ground. The bigger they were, the harder they fell: Aggron left a steep imprint of its shape onto the floor upon impact. Conway winced at the sight, as this brought back unpleasant memories of his evasion of certain death as he was dropped from a much higher altitude on Route 216. Had Paul not been there to buffer the impact, this was probably what would have happened to Conway. It was neither a pleasant sight nor a pleasant thought.

"Aggron is unable to battle!" the referee made official. "Drifblim's the winner!"

"Excellent!" Fantina exclaimed, doing a twirl before looking up at her Pokémon with admiring eyes. "Drifblim, you never disappoint!"

Conway shook himself out of his terrified state now that the battle was over. The things that crossed his mind as Aggron fell were the last things he needed to be thinking about; they were brutal distractions. Full concentration would be needed to overcome Drifblim; that much was for certain.

"Get some rest, Aggron," Conway urged as he recalled his Pokémon. "I think you're going to need it… your efforts will be rewarded once this is all over." He looked at Fantina, unable to help gulping at the scenario he was in now. "Whether or not we win this battle…" he finished; the tone of his voice somewhat quivering.

It was natural to be nervous at this point. This wasn't just a situation where Conway had only one Pokémon left to rely on: Conway barely battled with it, opting to merely train it intensively in order to master certain techniques. "It's down to this," he realized. "I hope my decision to capture a Normal-type to counter Fantina wasn't in error."

Fantina had no words to give; she merely looked to Conway and expected him to quickly send out his last Pokémon, as she was most eager to see what it would be.

"It's all on you now; let's make this count!" Conway yelled, taking his final Pokéball and giving it a throw. "I call upon you, Lickilicky…!"

Conway's freshly-evolved Pokémon came out and landed on the battlefield, looking sturdy and ready for combat. The training had made it very eager to engage in its first Gym Battle.

"Normale…?" Fantina wondered out loud in her native tongue, looking puzzled. "You've decided on the ineffectual Normal-type, monsieur Colin?"

"That would be correct," Conway affirmed. "But not without reason; I'm afraid your blatant favoritism made your final Pokémon a bit predictable, Fantina," he taunted. This much was true, however.

Fantina shook her head; this witty opponent of hers was using those unfamiliar big words again. "I do not understand what you mean," she told him.

"I've seen you in the papers," Conway explained, at least feeling calm pointing out his biggest advantage against the Gym Leader. "Your guest appearances in Contests, and what really says it all is your very fashionable dress, my dear."

"Aha, what a clever young man!" Fantina said with a smile, looking down at her dress momentarily. "Oui, ma robe de bal is a one-of-a-kind. A reason I came to Sinnoh was after I learned of the Drifloon et Drifblim. So the most kind tailors custom-designed this, and I 'ave worn it ever since."

Conway nodded, unable to help feeling prideful about being absolutely right. "So I suspected you would have a Drifblim on your team, naturally. I've been preparing several counters for it."

"Wit' a Normal-type?" a still-befuddled Fantina asked him. "Well, I cannot imagine what you must 'ave in store for me, mon cher, but now I will be ready for you!"

"You can try." The lenses of Conway's glasses gleamed against the light shining through the stained-glass windows of the stadium. "Let the battle begin."

* * *

Things were much more one-sided for the battle up north. Despite the lessons from Brandon not being forgotten, Paul still couldn't help losing his cool as Reggie's Staraptor was able to withstand everything Honchkrow threw at it and countered with at least twice the power. Honchkrow was usually a natural for landing critical hits to end the battle quickly, but this time it was the other way around.

Reggie had been much calmer than this brother. His concerns were still present, but pushed to the back of his mind while this battle went on. There was no doubt now that the crushing defeat from yesterday continued to take a toll on Paul's stability. Reggie was meeting Paul at every turn – almost as if he could read his thoughts – and essentially outsmarted him. Part of Paul's poor performance could have been attributed to his shock and awe of how amazingly proficient his brother had become as a battler. More and more, shades of his old self were re-emerging. The stronger Reggie got, the more doubtful Paul became of his own chances.

"Come on, Staraptor," Reggie urged; his tone completely stern and serious by now. "This battle's pretty much over. Brave Bird, one more time!"

He could tell when the battle was over for sure: Paul was too stunned at the difference in power levels of these two Pokémon to think of a way to even things up… and consequently, he'd already given up on defeating his brother this round. Each revelation that reached Paul hit him like a freight truck. Every time he turned around, something would shatter Paul's perception of the world and the people in his life, so it was no surprise that the young trainer was overwhelmed with confusion and doubt. At this point he wasn't even sure who to trust… least of all himself.

Honchkrow was taken down; it fell like a rock on the cold, hard earth after being struck by Staraptor's devastating attack. Reggie quickly recalled Staraptor, shaking his head and frowning in disapproval of how his brother seemed to be getting even worse.

Paul took his time to return Honchkrow. He felt rooted down by his doubts, uncertainties, and even fear. It was painfully obvious to Reggie that his little brother was on the verge of a nervous breakdown, and he wasn't sure whether or not he should let Paul go through with it. It would be heartbreaking to witness, but Reggie was running out of ideas for getting Paul out of this rut. He certainly couldn't face Ash in this state, and Reggie was determined to make sure Paul at least stood a chance in that fight. He couldn't bear to see his sibling so miserable… it was enough to actually make the Pokémon Breeder fairly angry.

"Where's your head at, Paul?" Reggie suddenly shouted, startling the younger brother. "I know you can do better than this; you've got to let it go, already!" Of course, he was referring to all of the negativity threatening to consume Paul. "Do you really want to lose to Ash like you did to Dad?"

This was the kind of talk Paul wanted to hear from Reggie all along. It was a bit forceful, but necessary at this point. While Paul wasn't trapped drowning in his own misery, he was still obviously broken, evident in his response. "I-… n-no, of course n-…"

"You can't afford to dwell on your loss right now!" Reggie told him, finally sounding assertive. "Learn from your mistakes and move on! Didn't that battle teach you anything at all?"

"I-I _know_," Paul forced himself to say out loud. He hated it when he came off as pathetic and needy, but there was no way for him to pretend he was fine now. "Controlling my emotions…"

"Which you _aren't doing_," Reggie pointed out to him. "If anything, you're even worse than before. You've _got_ to clear your mind; how are you supposed to concentrate if you're worrying about something else?"

Paul couldn't look his brother in the eye now. He knew very well how bad off he was, but it hurt him even more to hear it from someone else who could obviously see his weakness overtaking him. "I know that already," he replied, though his resolve wavered. "But you're… you're too strong…"

"When did that stop you before?" asked a very demanding Reggie. "You had to know early on it was hopeless to defeat Brandon, but you battled him until you had nothing left. What's different about today?"

By now, Paul knew what was different. He decided he would focus on just how strong Reggie had become… to determine whether or not he was truly fitting as Brandon's true heir. So far, the signs were showing that Reggie simply had more capability of surpassing Brandon than he did. Just like everything else in life… Paul never could defeat Reggie in any real competition. He was just too weak, and he always would be. It wasn't a matter of resolve here; only genetics.

It really did seem hopeless. No matter how Paul looked at it, Reggie was the one who should be having his aspirations to surpass his father and go beyond, ultimately becoming a master Champion. He had the power, he had the spirit, he had the integrity… and he had the connection to his Pokémon. It was heartbreaking for Paul to accept that, but he knew now that he had to start considering the needs of others… his family, his only friend, acquaintances and rivals alike… all of them would surely be affected by his death.

Paul knew there was no way out of saddening them all once it was his time to go. He wanted to do whatever he could now while he was alive to make up for that. For Reggie, Paul's desires became clear: Reggie needed to truly embrace the life of a battling Pokémon Trainer. Paul wasn't sure how he'd manage to distance Reggie from his current work… and admittedly Paul felt a little guilty about the massive number of Pokémon that depended on Reggie now, as well as the legacy of what was once his mother's lucrative business. That would likely have to be sacrificed… at least until Reggie settled down with somebody and had his spouse run things in his place.

But this was what needed to be done; Paul had determined that. Since yesterday, the ill trainer was torn apart piece by piece as Brandon revealed his most critical non-physical weakness. Despite being completely lost as to what motivated him to become a Pokémon Trainer and failing to find what connected him to his Pokémon, Paul did not want to give up. A revelation like this was what made the superior Reggie retire, so how was Paul able to resist that urge when he had even less of an idea of what he wanted for himself than his brother?

Honestly, Paul didn't know… all he knew was that he _wouldn't_ give up. He would not throw in the towel, no matter how impossible it seemed to recover from this and become enlightened.

"A lot happened yesterday," Paul finally replied, using the period of awkward silence to collect himself and speak coherently. "I can't absorb it all overnight… but I _will_ recover, and I _will_ defeat Ash." He looked Reggie in the eyes at last as a faint shade of determination was present in his face. "That's a promise."

Reggie wanted to get more than that out of his brother; he _knew_ there was more to this than Paul was letting on. But even a weak sign of recovery was a huge relief to Reggie. He would train Paul and his Pokémon rigorously after this battle so they could all get a taste of the strength he and his Pokémon acquired from hard manual labor. Reggie did not at all enjoy being superior to Paul in so many things… he couldn't understand how his little brother never possessed the perks he was gifted with at birth. Regardless, Reggie desired to give Paul the power he deserved.

"I'll hold you to that," Reggie assured, though his tone was cautious and much calmer now. "Paul, I want you to get ready for some very intensive training once we're done with our last match. It's probably a foregone conclusion, but…"

That statement was enough to ignite Paul's battling spirit once more. "We'll see about that," he darkly warned before throwing out a Pokéball. "Torterra, stand by for battle!"

Reggie nodded, expecting Paul would save his starter for last. Appropriately, the elder brother unleashed his first Pokémon as well. "Infernape… let's do this!"

Infernape came out in a burst of flame, already by appearance alone showing that its strength had increased exponentially over the past few days.

A sudden intense feeling stuck Paul deep inside just then, brought on by merely seeing this powerful Infernape. He had always compared Ash to Reggie, and with good reason. The two had very similar personalities, Pokémon, and battle techniques. What always prevented Paul from writing Ash off entirely (prior to finding out he defeated Brandon, at least) was Chimchar. Paul remembered back when that Chimchar used to be his; he dreamed of seeing Chimchar look exactly like the Infernape he was facing now. But Paul completely failed to bring out the power of Blaze that he saw when the two first crossed paths. It wasn't for a lack of trying, and Paul never did exactly find out how he was unable to trigger the power Chimchar held within itself. The stern, cruel trainer was pretty good about keeping Chimchar off his mind most of the time since it came into Ash's ownership, but every now and then it would come to bother him… particularly whenever he met Ash.

Reggie had very little trouble helping his Chimchar become a powerful Infernape back in the day. Paul barely remembered it, but he vaguely recalled the day Reggie's Monferno evolved to Infernape. Emotions were rather high at that time, as it was just before Reggie's first battle in the Sinnoh League… and hence, after Andrea's death. Paul had just barely recovered from the loss by then, and Reggie's stability hung by a single thread. The beginning trainer's emotions were felt through Monferno, and during an incident where the young Paul had gotten himself in a scuffle with a few rowdy kids, Reggie acted impulsively to protect his brother and sent out his starter to scare the little bullies away. This scenario was nothing new, actually, but it was the first scuffle the abrasive little Paul got into since his mother's passing.

Emotions were high, and since Reggie had done such a fantastic job of bonding with his starter throughout their Sinnoh journey, their connection was spiritually unbreakable. When Monferno was sent out and saw what was going on, seeing how it affected its trainer and the trainer's little brother, it willed itself into evolving to Infernape. The way this evolution occurred is what stuck out the most in Paul's memory – Monferno conjured flames that seemed to consume itself, but instead it burst out of the mass of flames as a fully-evolved Pokémon, all to save the reckless little brother.

Flashbacks of this came to Paul's mind when he met Chimchar. Though Paul knew he'd always mesh better with a Turtwig, he sometimes wondered if he could accomplish the amazing things his brother did back in the day. Seeing Chimchar fight off a pack of wild Zangoose in a fiery rage single-handedly told Paul this was his chance to experience the raw, wild power of Sinnoh's Fire-typed starter. So badly he wanted to see this Chimchar evolve fully the way his brother's did, but it never happened. When Ash inadvertently brought out Blaze some months ago while battling Paul; that was the first true sign for the callous trainer as to what Ash really was to him: a doppelganger of his brother. The resentment Paul had for Reggie out of sheer jealousy easily transferred to Ash, and it was where much of his sour attitude towards the Kanto native originated.

Chimchar was long overdue for an evolution. Paul couldn't invoke it, but if Ash could bring out the power of Blaze in a relatively short time, then it was reasonable to believe that one day Ash would have a Monferno of his own… and down the road, a sturdy and unbreakable Infernape… just like his brother's.

He'd be battling Ash in nine days. Chimchar would surely be involved in that battle. The thought of Ash possessing the raw power similar to Reggie was even more a cause to worry about being left behind in the dust. Paul's limitations were destroying everything he worked so hard for in the past four years. This was the first time Paul was actually _nervous_ about battling his so-called rival.

All in all, this was a test. Seeing Paul stall in silence for a while told Reggie everything he needed to know: he was feeling threatened. It didn't help that this battle would be as one-sided as the previous two, and this would be the saddest example of it. Reggie also knew it was a given that Ash's Chimchar would be in the upcoming battle. Most importantly, he knew that Chimchar was the link between Ash and Paul… and any battle with Chimchar in it would be full of emotional trials. Paul would be fighting against one of his biggest examples of failure – and that's not on Chimchar's end – solely _Paul's_ incompetence to bring out the power in this Pokémon that Ash could manage.

"Keep it together, Paul," Reggie instructed very sternly. "This is no time to be afraid."

"A-afraid?" That brought Paul back to reality for certain. "Never!"

He was vicious about this claim, as well he should be. It was only expected that the sons of the Brave Symbol-bearing Pyramid Kind would rid themselves of needless fears and phobias.

"Then make your move," Reggie challenged, staring directly at his brother. "You always wanted to beat my Infernape… here's your chance."

Paul was ridiculously susceptible to taunts. Emotionally troubled as he was now, of course he was going to follow through with this. "So be it!" he growled out. "Torterra, Stone Edge!"

"Infernape, Mach Punch."

Reggie couldn't pretend to be enthusiastic any longer. As he watched his starter smash the storm of rocks brought on by his brother's starter into dust with very little effort, he knew this match was already over.

These next nine days were going to be the longest, most arduous days of both their lives.

* * *

"Will-O-Wisp, allons-y!"

Back at Hearthome City's Gym, Fantina had become concerned with the power of Conway's last Pokémon, Lickilicky. It and Drifblim had traded hits, seemingly even in power, but it was obvious that this part of the battle was merely the two testing each other for getting a gauge on the Pokémon's strength, and perhaps to find its weak spot.

Using Will-O-Wisp was a cunning move; it inflicted Lickilicky with a burn, and consequently nerfed its attack power.

"Not good," Conway grumbled. "I'm counting on physical power to win this match… though either way, this Drifblim won't be taken down easily. That amazing stamina…"

"Will one of you throw out a real attack already?" Barry hollered out of nowhere, twitching with anticipation and impatience, as he wanted this match over with so _he_ could take Fantina on next. "You're both driving me nuts over here!"

Conway rolled his eyes; he figured by now Barry was itching for a battle himself, but he wished his companion would control himself a bit better. Right now he was coming off as half his age, and that was a generous estimation on Conway's part. Frankly, it was pretty embarrassing most of the time to tell officials and higher-ups that they were associated every time Barry caused a mess.

All this just within a few days of knowing each other – to Conway it already felt like a whole month with Paul and then some.

"I would like you to show me your moves, mon ami!" Fantina invited. "For I must see if it will be necessary to execute my next idea."

Troubled as Conway looked, he knew he'd worn out the strategy of lightly attacking to get a beat on his opponent. Thankfully, there was an array of attacks that would all land effective damage on Drifblim… provided that it didn't dodge or buff up its own stats.

"If the madam wishes, that's just what we'll do," the classy Conway conceded. "Lickilicky; time for Thunderbolt!"

Both Fantina and Barry were surprised to see this move used. Apparently Barry hadn't been paying attention while Conway was getting Lickilicky up to speed earlier with the rest of his team, because to him it seemed he'd never seen this Pokémon use that particular move before. It was a special attack, so its power was not cut down by the effects of burn. Soon after the execution, however, Lickilicky found itself consumed in a brief spurt of flames, taking damage from it. It had a tendency to come out of nowhere, which startled both Conway and Barry each time it happened. It was only minor damage that Lickilicky took, but that would add up soon enough in addition to the damage Drifblim would do to it as the battle wore on.

Drifblim was struck directly, sustaining a good chunk of damage as it wobbled around and even sank a little in midair.

"Didn't expect I would be using a move like that, I see," Conway observed, mostly to himself despite being audible. "Good, good. Then the element of surprise appears to be on my side."

"T'at was indeed an unexpected move," Fantina admitted… but the fact that she was smirking was a cause for concern. "Now it is time for me to do somet'ing out of the ordinary!"

Tried as he might, Conway couldn't help but stiffen up at her warning. "Brace yourself," he muttered to Lickilicky, who did as its trainer suggested. An onslaught of power and terror was expected…

"Ominous Wind!" Fantina called for, completely throwing off both the challenger and one-man audience simultaneously. A collection of breezes hued in a vague purple color surrounded Drifblim. It stretched its long, ribbon-like arms out to spread the attack to a further range. It reached Lickilicky, but…

"That's… why the heck would Fantina do that?" Barry wondered. "What Ghost-type specialist doesn't know that those moves don't affect Normal-types at all? She's totally lost it!"

For once, he was right: Lickilicky felt nothing at all from this attack. The wind phased through Lickilicky as if it were nothing more than an ordinary spring breeze. Conway was also a bit puzzled at this decision. It was definitely unexpected and out of the ordinary, but… what was this supposed to prove?

Conway soon got his answer when Drifblim's entire body suddenly emitted a powerful glow. Fantina looked delighted about this, but she hadn't called for another attack, so what was this all about? It was clearly brought about by Ominous Wind…

That's when it all came together, once Conway made the connection. "Oh, no… don't tell me that ended up…"

"What?" Barry interrupted. "What's going on with Drifblim, already? That attack didn't land a hit! It shouldn't be glowing out of nowhere like that!"

"It seems t'at monsieur Colin already knows the answer, non?" Fantina rhetorically asked, resuming her smug stance.

The wary Conway nodded. "Even if Ominous Wind doesn't affect the opponent, the Pokémon that uses this attack stands a chance of becoming _very_ powerful."

Drifblim certainly did look much more menacing than it did before. Barry still wasn't catching on. "Very powerful? Like how?"

"The effects on the user of Ominous Wind are basically that of Bulk Up, Calm Mind, and Agility combined," the very studious Conway informed. "Strength, speed, defense, special power and defense… all of those attributes are enhanced right now."

"You're kidding me!" Barry blurted out in disbelief. "That's going to make it _so_ overpowered! How are you supposed to take it on now? I mean, even before this you knew it couldn't possibly be easy…!"

Conway shook his head. "I'll be leaving Lickilicky wide open for an attack, but I'm quite thankful I taught Lickilicky this move in case something like this happened. It's time to even things back up!"

Fantina stood still, trying not to be upset if what Conway was about to do was what she feared. "So you prepared for t'is as well, did you…"

"You can never be too prepared," Conway stated, and how true he was. "Lickilicky, use Psych Up!"

Though Lickilicky's expressions became more distant than usual as a result of this, its entire body glowed in the exact same manner as Drifblim.

"Indeed, you are a most formidable opponent," Fantina told the young trainer, narrowing her eyes. "But we shall prevail! Drifblim, Psychic!"

That was going to be nearly impossible to dodge, especially since Lickilicky was a huge target that had just finished copying all of Drifblim's enhancements to itself. The glowing outline appearing on its body was proof that it had been caught.

Conway shook his head, watching his Pokémon with concern as it was lifted up by Drifblim's whim. Lickilicky was strong enough to at least struggle to regain control, but couldn't stop its own ascent.

Barry crossed his arms and frowned, kicking his legs up on a seat from the row below him as he relaxed in his seat (as best he could). "Great, Lickilicky's gonna be dropped like a rock and get flattened like Aggron. All that training for Rollout was for nothing; it's over!"

The pessimism was not helping Conway's resolve. The eerie way Drifblim's eyes glowed as it continue to force Lickilicky to rise higher and higher up was hard enough to not stare at in horror. Conway was at least thankful Fantina didn't have something like a Dusknoir (that would have really hit close to home for him), but the length of this final round was wearing him down. As long as Drifblim could use Psychic, Conway ran the risk of Lickilicky suffering a devastating blow. The fact that it was still burned didn't help, either.

Lickilicky at least had the muscle power to struggle, unlike most Pokémon. Conway tried to think of a solution based on this… "Aha! I think I've got it!"

Barry looked down at his partner, quite skeptical. "Oh, what's he got _now_…?"

"Lickilicky! Remember the source of your power!" Conway called out to his Pokémon. "If you're able to move, you ought to be able to break free! Lick to get out of there!"

Fantina found that to be an odd strategic move. "But how would t'at…" she wondered out loud before looking up and seeing a change in her own strategy. "Mon dieu…! Impossible!"

With its mighty and hefty tongue, Lickilicky managed to wear out the hold of Psychic and set itself free. However, this left it several feet up in the air with no support, so gravity took over as per usual.

"Lickilicky!" Conway shouted, desperate to save his newest Pokémon from a painful knockout. "Remember the training! Tuck in and rev up!"

Just as Conway requested, Lickilicky tucked itself into a round, pink ball of blubber and rotated itself as it fell. Upon impact, Lickilicky used its tongue to propel itself back up, effectively bouncing off the floor at an angle that put the Licking Pokémon making a beeline towards Drifblim.

"Whoa!" Barry exclaimed, standing right back up out of his seat for the umpteenth time since the battle began. "How'd he pull _that_ off?"

"Force it back!" Fantina commanded. "That Pokémon cannot compare to your power!"

Instead of dodging, Drifblim flew straight towards the balled-up Lickilicky. Upon their collision, an explosion of the two powers ignited, shrouding the battle scene with smoke and dusty debris.

Due to its balloon-like composition, Drifblim was just as easily knocked back as it could easy force an opponent away, but it was still able to battle in spite of that chunk of damage sustained. Lickilicky was knocked out of its ball form and fell to the floor on its back, looking worse for wear. If nothing else, it was no longer captive to Psychic. Fantina would now have to find a way to work around that.

As Lickilicky stood up, it howled in pain as the effects of burn returned, briefly consuming the large Pokémon's body in flames before wearing off. More damage was sustained, and Conway knew he couldn't let this battle drag out for much longer; otherwise the effects from Will-O-Wisp would defeat Lickilicky before any more direct attacks from Drifblim.

"I must know, Colin, 'ow you managed to break from my psychic trap," Fantina kindly requested. "T'at Pokémon of yours is quite strong, non? Even while burned, even against psychic power…"

"Simple biology," Conway answered sternly. "The strongest muscle of the human body is the tongue, believe it or not. I imagine the same would apply to many Pokémon – especially on species like Lickitung and Lickilicky. The power of their tongues compared to man's must be at least tenfold. Lickilicky was already strong enough to struggle despite being caught in Psychic, so I knew using its tongue to the maximum power would be enough to break the hold. The more you know…"

Barry of course had a hard time accepting this. "Unbelievable. He's using his nerd powers and he's _succeeding?_ Something is _so_ not right here."

"I was not aware," Fantina humbly admitted, giving her opponent a bow. "Merci; I 'ave learned much from you today, young man."

Conway frowned, as he had a feeling Fantina's small-talk was her own strategy to drag the battle out – the opposite of what Conway wanted – in an effort to wear Lickilicky down with the lasting injuries it had already sustained. Without the multiple buffers from Psych Up, Lickilicky may not even be standing right now.

Unfortunately, it had been a while since the effects of Light Screen were shown while Fantina was attacking with special moves. Conway assumed it must have been dissolved by now… even more reason for him to end this match quickly.

"The battle isn't over yet," Conway reminded the Gym Leader. "Lickilicky, I want you to try a direct attack at Drifblim again. You're going to focus on your tongue this time rather than your body; so you should know which attack you need to use on it, correct?"

The weary pink Pokémon gave Conway an understanding nod. It hopped forward a few feet, but did not charge at Drifblim like last time.

"Brace yourself, mon ami," Fantina muttered to her Drifblim. "It will not be much longer."

"In position!" Conway shouted while Lickilicky confirmed its place on the field. "Ready – aim - … _Lick!_"

Instead of lashing its tongue at Drifblim directly as the two opponents expected, Lickilicky struck its tongue straight into the floor. The tenfold-power of a human's tongue strength was holding up well here, as this floor was not easy at all to penetrate. Aggron only managed it somewhat due to its girth, weight, and force of gravity doing all the work. Fantina's eyes widened as she watched the roly-poly Pokémon ruin her elegant floor more so than any other challenger she had so far. All that, and she had no idea what Conway was planning for to happen.

Evidently, Fantina didn't do too much studying on just what the Lickilicky species was capable of. She was beyond shocked when that same tongue emerged from her side of the battle stadium flooring and smashed it open to leave a gaping hole for later. It was a stretch, but Lickilicky managed to extend its tongue a few yards to reach its opponent directly from below.

The elegant Gym Leader snapped out of her horror of the situation as she realized Drifblim, floating as high as it was, did not notice immediately that the enemy tongue emerged directly under it. "Underneath you…! Éloignez-vous de là!"

But it was too late. The incredibly flexible tongue brushed Drifblim from below; as a Ghost-type attack, that was extremely effective against the Blimp Pokémon. It also shuddered in reaction to the eerie, icky feeling. Conway was perfectly capable of frightening the ones he himself feared… and seeing that with his own two eyes gave Conway's resolve a second wind.

Lickilicky's tongue receded in a rather destructive manner, breaking the rest of the floor pieces the thick muscle was under rather than simply slithering backwards. It was just quicker this way. Luck seemed to be on Conway's side this time; he smiled with glee upon seeing minor bolts of static electricity rise up as Drifblim attempted to move. There was no doubt about it: the Blimp Pokémon was overcome with paralysis. Conway winced slightly as he felt a brief blast of heat blowing against him; that came from Lickilicky's lasting burn.

Sustaining this much damage got Lickilicky to fall to its knee, struggling to keep itself together. Status effects seem to have been traded on both sides throughout the entire battle, but Conway was glad to have his Pokémon burned opposed to paralyzed or lulled into a deep sleep.

"I see you've been worn down," Conway quietly noted to his Pokémon. "No worries; I think the end is nigh. You've been doing an excellent job for your first Gym Battle. Keep on the defensive for now; we need to see what Fantina's going to do now."

With paralysis to contend with, Fantina once again found herself stuck in a corner. There was really only one way she could attack Lickilicky effectively. Seeing the opponent Pokémon clearly fatigued, however, made the Gym Leader confident that she could outlast the opposition in this battle.

"The time for stalling is over!" Fantina announced, doing a spin with her dress elegantly twirling around her. "We shall unleash the power of your fear! Drifblim, Ominous Wind – follow up wit' Psychic!"

Conway could see what Fantina was doing now. Psyching _him_ out, distracting him once more to give Drifblim the chance to land the decisive blow on his Pokémon. Drifblim wasn't powered up this time as the ineffective-but-haunting dark winds wisped around the stadium… it was giving Conway the chills, but he was far too determined to win to let himself be overcome with his phobias.

"You'll regret that move!" Conway promised, pointing directly at Drifblim despite talking to Fantina. "Lickilicky, it's time for the real deal. Charge your Rollout, just as you did this morning…"

After suffering another split-second of pain from its burn, Lickilicky went along with Conway's plan. This would indeed be much like the training practice with Barry, only with higher stakes and a different atmosphere. Fantina noticed Lickilicky was revving up in its tightly-held ball form, kicking up clouds of dust on both sides of it.

"Ah, yes," Fantina realized. "I remember… the Pokémon Lickitung can only evolve if it learns Rollout." She looked to Drifblim, who was charging its Psychic attack. If this were to hit Lickilicky directly, it would have no chance to struggle, much less break free. "Ah, Drifblim. I propose we render 'is attack useless, vous ne croyez pas?"

Drifblim seemed to be all for her idea. "Ascend, my Drifblim!" Fantina called out. "T'at Lickilicky shall never reach you no matter 'ow 'ard it tries! And t'en, we end the battle wit' the aerial attack!"

Conway carefully watched Drifblim slowly rise up towards the ceiling of the Hearthome Gym. Barry also watched, looking amused as a small child might be at such a sight. "I get it now," Barry realized, speaking quietly for once. "I did the same with my Staraptor, but it couldn't get away from Rollout no matter what…." He looked down at the arena, deciding to give his support the best way he could. "You can do it!" he shouted at Conway. "I know what you're gonna do; now go for it and end this battle!"

Conway was thankful that Barry didn't accidentally spill his whole strategy then and there, because he wouldn't have put it past him at all. Though he'd been a major irritation throughout this battle, it did comfort Conway knowing that Barry was rooting for him. Somehow, he had a feeling Paul wouldn't be doing the same if he were here now.

"Well, I won't disappoint you," Conway assured him. "Lickilicky, once you've found your angle, set off and put Drifblim down for good!"

"Absurde," Fantina scoffed, holding in a giggle. "Colin, 'ow do you plan to reach my Pokémon from so 'igh up t'ere? Your Lickilicky cannot fly, the last I recall."

Obviously feigning sorrow, Conway nodded along with the Gym Leader. "Regrettably so, mademoiselle, you would be correct. I have no choice but to use the next best thing: the laws of motion!"

"Excusez-moi?" the exotic Gym Leader inquired, puzzled at such a statement. "What laws are we speaking of? Did I miss somet'ing?"

"I assure you, it's neither a cultural boundary nor a language barrier," Conway promised. He loved having an excuse to prattle on about the things he knew that not many others his age (and in this case, his elders) did. "The laws of motion were born from the mind of one Sir Isaac Newton many centuries ago…"

Barry's enthusiasm died most possibly its quickest death yet. He sighed, slumping over in his seat and shaking his head, trying to tune Conway out as best he could. "Oh man, this is _not_ the time for this… is it because I encouraged him? I guess I'd better stop doing that."

"You'll do well to remember the third law in this case – thankfully, it's a rather catchy phrase," Conway advised his challenger, raising a finger up in he air as he recited the law he knew by heart. "For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction."

This lesson of Conway's did well to distract Fantina as Lickilicky rolled its way towards its target – the wall behind Fantina – to jump up and aim for one of the pillars nearby. With Drifblim high in the air and barely able to hear much of anything going on down below, it was a wide and open target.

"Equal and opposite?" Fantina questioned, trying to grasp the concept. "Every time?"

"The examples I could give are endless," Conway informed her. "But you are correct: every time. In fact, our battle is a perfect example of action versus reaction."

"Our battle!" the Gym Leader shrieked, looking around in a panic. "Oh! Oh no, where is your Lickilicky?"

Conway looked up, watching his newest capture make its jump from the floor to the highest point of the column it could reach. Its improved muscular strength allowed the Licking Pokémon to reach the desired height of its ricochet point. This victory was pretty much in the bag now. "Up there… winning this battle."

Fantina shrieked, waving her arms to Drifblim in warning. This was a risky move on Conway's part as Drifblim wasn't completely helpless, being charged with Psychic and the like, but it remained to be a very large and clueless target. It failed to realize in time what its trainer's body language insinuated as Lickilicky bounced off the pillar like a gigantic rubber ball. The rebound angle was perfect, and there was little to be done about the imminent collision. Both Pokémon, having immense amounts of power stored up in their states, caused a brutal explosion upon their impact. Conway's smugness and security faded into concern as he failed to take into account the fact that Drifblim still had some energy Lickilicky needed to break through in order to land a hit. Was it powerful enough at that point to succeed…?

Again, like an easily-distracted toddler, Barry gazed up at the result of the amazing collision. In a closed area like this, it would take a while for the smoke to clear up and reveal the aftermath of what had to have been the final act of this battle.

Before the area was completely visible, two distinct thuds were heard against the stadium floor – obviously that had to have been Lickilicky and Drifblim landing after the high-altitude clash. Whether or not either of them were alright was still a mystery.

This battle had not been good for Conway's nerves… or his heart… or his emotional stability. He still possessed the ability to hold in his urge to cry out for his Pokémon, but couldn't help loathing himself for failing to take account of how dangerous this move must have been for both Pokémon. Irresponsibility like this would have to be rectified soon, or else it was a certainty that Saturn would never be taken down.

Being a figure of higher authority, Fantina knew she had to remain calm and mature as well. Both patiently waited for the smoke to clear away; Barry of course was not so patient, but the nature of the final attack left him too stunned to complain about the wait. He was still on the edge of his seat regardless; this _had_ to be the longest minute of his entire life.

At last, the battlefield was coming into view. Right away, it was seen that both Drifblim and Lickilicky were still conscious. Lickilicky was on its knee and clearly worn down while Drifblim could only hover a mere few inches above the ground while most of its arm-like extensions had already flopped onto the floor. One of these Pokémon were going to fall down completely very soon.

Everyone – Conway especially – was startled when the effects of burn took its toll on Lickilicky again, as no one expected the small spontaneous combustion to pop up after the tenuous moments of silence. Conway almost lost it there; he thought that certainly must have taken what little strength Lickilicky had remaining.

But before that, Drifblim finally sank to the floor and rolled on its side.

The swirls on the Blimp Pokémon's eyes confirmed the final result.

"Drifblim is unable to battle!" the referee decreed. "Lickilicky wins, and victory goes to Colin of Celestic Town…!"

Now it was Conway's turn to sink to his knees, though in his case it was both in relief and disbelief. "Huh, what… how about that…"

There was one certainty always present whenever one battled against Conway – the experience would always be unique each time. It was really showing at this point how well his studious ways paid off; very few Pokémon Trainers with the limited amount of actual battling experience (much less _Gym Battle_ experience) could achieve three Gym Badges this quickly. The sense of urgency in Conway's situation also aided in this great success; the young trainer very well knew he couldn't afford to dawdle for much longer. He still didn't have much of a clue of what his cousin was really doing, but thanks to the tracking bug he planted, Saturn's whereabouts weren't much of a mystery now. Granted, in this frame of time Saturn had changed out of his suit where the bug was planted. If Saturn were to leave for any reason, Conway would be none the wiser.

Still, from what Conway observed, the Galactic admin remained in one spot for quite a while now. It was only logical to make a first strike there when he was ready. But even with the progress he's made, Conway knew it just wasn't time yet. He wondered how much longer he'd be able to keep this a secret from Barry. The last thing he wanted was to get Barry involved in a dire situation like this; it wasn't just a matter of Barry's lack of stealth ruining his mission. Conway genuinely didn't want to have his companion's life endangered… but he had a sinking feeling there would be some sort of confrontation today in regards to the issue of his name.

As he accepted his Relic Badge from Fantina, however, Conway at least had some time to rest and think of a way to work around the worst-case scenario while Barry stepped up to bat for his chance at defeating Fantina.

Much like how he couldn't stop thinking about how Paul was faring day by day, Conway remained ever-curious as to what exactly his cousin was getting himself into. There was still much left to learn and a long way to go.

* * *

"You believe the geo-scanners have finally picked up what we seek?"

Charon bowed humbly (though without too much effort – whether it was his old age or his lack of true respect for his boss was debatable) to his employer. "I'll admit the entirety of Mt. Coronet has yet to be scanned, but the readings indicate some rather interesting hollow dwellings that I suspect host the little hiding place we've been searching for all this time."

"And how are you not certain this "finding" of yours isn't just a mere cave of no value?" Saturn retorted, having not forgiven the scientist for swiping his recently-claimed computer for his own purposes. He put much work and effort into filing a complaint against the man he deemed an irresponsible geezer, but just as Charon planned, it was all undone as his sudden discovery made Cyrus, the head of Team Galactic, pay no mind at all to the elderly man's shenanigans.

"You suggest we leave a stone unturned, Commander Saturn?" Cyrus asked his subordinate, looking him straight in the eyes. The young follower became stiff as their eyes locked. He liked to think of himself as Cyrus' right hand man… and perhaps Cyrus might have seen it that way if he even remotely cared.

"O-of course not, sir," Saturn apologized, putting much more effort into his bowing than his coworker. "I just believe Charon should be doing some more research before leading us into a wild goose chase, wasting both your time and resources. We've had quite enough of those by now," he said while looking directly at Mars. "I am not against scouting the area, but past experiences have taught me that we should be more thorough with our findings before leaping right into another red herring."

Mars, hands on her hips, narrowed her eyes at Saturn. "Sure, you'll use me as an example of where we fell short, but don't forget you've messed up in the past, too."

"At least I am clearly learning from where I failed," Saturn snapped back. "How anyone could fail at blowing up an island when you had more than enough explosives to get the job done is a mystery to us all. Let's not forget your lack of ability to take anything seriously cost you the chance to bond with Mesprit at Lake Verity."

"Just as you were much too late in taking the time to bond with Azelf at Lake Valor," Cyrus pointed out. Not to defend Mars, but to make a point that his commanders were more or less on even ground regardless of their perceptions. "As well as failing to complete your mission in Veilstone City, further exposing Team Galactic to the media since you were foolish enough to present yourself before an officer of the law."

Saturn couldn't really talk his way out of that, much as he wanted to. He closed his eyes and held his tongue out of respect for his leader. "My apologies, sir," he said in a solemn tone. "It will not happen again."

Cyrus nodded. "I will make sure of that. Plans for traveling north shall be arranged immediately," he decided. "The convenience of our head scientist's findings being located close to Lake Acuity should not be ignored. Now that Commander Saturn has acquired the information we need on the final legendary Pokémon of the lakes, it is imperative that the chance to bond with it is not wasted – this is our final opportunity."

"If only there was a way to find out who bonded with the other two," Saturn muttered before looking up to Cyrus. "Sir, I will make up for my past failures and bond with Uxie, rest assured."

The Galactic commander was soon crestfallen upon seeing his leader shake his head in disapproval. "For the sake of our cause, I find it unwise to invest my hopes in you for this task once more. Commander Jupiter will go to Lake Acuity alone to bond with Uxie."

The violet-haired co-commander of Saturn's stood firm at that moment, saluting to her leader. Though she looked professional, the gleam in her eyes showed her eagerness to finally have her own solo mission. "I won't let you down, sir," she promised. "I'm not one who simply accepts failure."

"But I was the one who found all of the information we have on Uxie!" Saturn protested. "It was no easy feat obtaining that book, either!"

"I can vouch for that," Mars muttered.

Saturn ignored her for once. "I've done all the work; what right does Jupiter have to take what's rightfully mine?"

"Her superior track record," Cyrus simply said. "And that's all she needs. You won't be completely left out, Commander Saturn, if that's what you are dreading."

Whenever Cyrus mentioned any particular emotion, Saturn knew to hold firm and keep his feelings to himself. "You did say Jupiter would be pursuing Uxie alone," he reminded. "So what do you have in mind for me?"

Cyrus merely gestured to the head scientist of the group. "You will accompany Charon to Mt. Coronet and assist him as needed. Do whatever is necessary to ascertain what Charon discovered, and if it turns out to be what we seek, you are to contact me immediately."

The very thought of working with Charon at all gave Saturn a headache. But a mission of this magnitude would certainly drive him insane. "But-… why must I go along with him?" he asked, trying not to sound too desperate to get out of this duty. "It isn't as if he's going in alone; he'll have grunts to do the dirty work…."

"Are you in doubt of my judgment, Commander Saturn?" Cyrus asked him, no doubt looking threatening as he did. With a face like his, being menacing was the simplest of all tasks. He was back to being neutral once Saturn shook his head to deny the accusation. "Mountain excavation is no simple task; surely you know this. It's quite dangerous, in fact, and we cannot afford to lose our head scientist when he is the only one among you all who has made any real _progress_ in our mission... nor can we lose what may be the gateway to our goal."

A statement like that was a cold burn on the three commanders.

"You all need to start proving your worth now," Cyrus ordered them. "Commander Saturn, you will be most useful presiding over Charon in this mission. Take it or leave it."

"Of course I'll take it, sir," Saturn said, feeling himself sweat with anxiety. "I am ever grateful to have this opportunity."

That covered all of Cyrus' most valued personnel except…

"So what about me?" Mars asked. "What do I get to do?"

"Commander Mars, you will remain here and assume the duties of your fellow commanders in their absence," Cyrus decided. It took all but a second for him to find a way to make use of his flighty, flirtatious elite. "I have heard rumors that you've had an abundance of free time as of late, so an increased workload should do well enough to keep you busy. Are you up to the task?"

Mars wanted to whine and protest her heart out, but thanks to Saturn's fussing it was obvious that Cyrus had no more patience left to deal with childish insubordination. It was daunting enough covering Saturn's position while he took a week off to run a funeral and make off with his cousin's belongings. Having a tripled workload sounded like absolute murder.

Maybe she was finally getting her comeuppance for her extravagant pizza party that she miraculously kept a secret from Cyrus. Saturn liked to believe that was the case, anyway.

"It's my pleasure to serve," Mars said through gritted teeth. "No problem; I can oversee operations while these two go off adventuring." She could, but she really didn't want to.

"Then it's settled," Cyrus confirmed. "Make preparations for travel immediately; Commander Saturn and Charon, make sure you take along as many reinforcement troops as you possibly can."

Charon nodded, glowing with glee that things were going his way and had the pleasure of seeing Saturn get scolded. "I'm sure you're aware this will not be something that can be accomplished overnight; depending on the depth of my finding, it may take up to a week before our excavation unearths what you seek."

It wasn't exactly something Cyrus wanted to hear, but he'd been patient this long… he could wait a week longer if needed. "Do what you must and take your time; a procedure like this should not be rushed. I trust you'll show some true results, head scientist?"

"Oh, you'll get _something_," Charon slyly assured. "And we'll get on it right away." He suddenly snagged Saturn by the arm and started dragging him off like a small, obnoxious child in the middle of a store. "Come come now, youngster. Make haste if you want to see your boss happy."

The very startled Saturn could only growl unintelligible curses at the old man while Mars and Jupiter looked on with amusement.

"On the other hand, I think Saturn got the raw end of the deal after all," Mars figured, letting out a smirk.

Jupiter nodded in agreement. "He who tries to get everything will end up with nothing. And that _has_ to be worse than nothing."

Was this karma? Saturn had no idea. From beyond the grave, was his cousin's influence tormenting him in the form of a cantankerous old scientist? It sure did seem like it.

Even having virtually everything he wanted now… Saturn hated his life. At least he was distanced from Franny since she became a Team Galactic grunt, as she was off in the quarters for new recruits most of the time. Saturn didn't mind his other cousin as much… all of this was an ideal scenario for Saturn until now. His overachieving backfired on him; suddenly it seemed he was no longer Cyrus' favorite – not that his boss ever said this out loud, but Saturn liked to think this was the case.

Now he was having doubts… but never regrets.

* * *

"Blast Burn, let's go!"

"Frenzy Plant, _now!_"

The three-on-three battle between the brothers had reached its climax in the final match, pitting two fully-evolved Sinnoh starters against one another. This match was surprisingly not as one-sided as the previous two – a relief on Reggie's side – as Infernape had taken enough damage to invoke the power of Blaze.

On the other hand, Torterra sustained considerable damage as well. It was made to be able to take a lot of hits, of course, but by now it too was pushed to a critical point. The unusual green glow emitting from Torterra's body certainly wasn't Giga Drain – it was the Overgrow ability kicking in. It had been a long time since Torterra was pushed this far in battle, and Paul was more than concerned. These abilities were very risky and hard to control at times. Reggie, however, seemed perfectly connected as ever with his Infernape as it blasted through the vicious jungle of oversized, thorny roots that burst from the ground with relative ease. It helped being a Fire-type going against the strongest known Grass-type move, at least.

Paul did whatever he could, willing Torterra to stay strong and endure. He tried his best to spiritually reach out to Torterra as Reggie could with his Infernape, but his pleas remained unheard by the Continent Pokémon. For whatever reason, Paul was incapable of tapping into that power that made Reggie nigh unbeatable.

It was largely because of this that Paul lost. He lost hard; once Infernape burned its way through the essence of Frenzy Plant, Torterra was rendered defenseless and was effectively thrown far back as it took a concentrated burst of flames to the face. Bear in mind that Torterra was a beast of a Pokémon, weighing in at nearly seven-hundred pounds. Infernape's strength had to be _insanely_ high to blast this Pokémon away with ease. Paul watched in horror as his first Pokémon skid across the snow and dirt a few yards… then several hundred feet… then almost a _mile_.

Once Paul found himself unfrozen by pure and utter shock, he instinctually dashed off towards his Torterra, highly concerned for its health. Reggie was quick to follow, but…

"_DON'T FOLLOW ME!"_

And Reggie just skid to a halt, aghast at what he just heard. Was there ever a time Paul sounded this angry, upset, afraid, confused, self-conscious, and desperate all at once, all at his maximum? He knew his brother was not yet mended, and though he was concerned that he might have gone too far with Torterra, he trusted his Infernape hadn't mortally wounded his brother's Pokémon. That was just how strong their bond was… compared to the barely-there bond existing between Paul and his Torterra.

What counted, though, was that the bond was _there_, however weak it was. Reggie would stay where he was, at a great distance, until Paul was ready to come back to him. There was much to discuss about what went wrong during these battles, and where Paul needed to improve… at the same time, Reggie could tell much of Paul's poor performance was due to the fact that he hadn't fully recovered from yesterday's embarrassing loss. Losing in a similar manner against his gentle-natured brother was just too much for him to handle within such a short period of time.

Paul had eight days left to straighten himself up and get back on his feet. If he lost to Ash, he wouldn't know what to do with himself. It was a very scary and very real possibility now, and Paul just didn't want to think about it.

When he finally reached his Torterra, Paul just fell to his knees and stumbled to lean against his Pokémon's side. His hands grasped at Torterra's battered shell, still warm from the hit it took from Blast Burn. When he leaned over to actually face Torterra, seeing its weary and pained expression, that was finally the breaking point – it could no longer be held in.

Paul began to cry his heart out.

He honestly couldn't remember the last time he cried, much less this openly. During the toughest times of his journey, or when he lost in a League Conference, Paul would struggle and perhaps a tear or two would escape, dribbling down his face. Those were easy to brush away.

But these weren't just gratuitous tears – Paul wailed and cried from the very bottom of his heart. He barely sounded like himself, because this was all of the agony he kept inside finally being released. It was loud, it was embarrassing, but finally it was something that surpassed Paul's pride. He had wanted to cry ever since he found out he was going to die. He _really_ felt the urge to sob after he lost to Brandon yesterday, but with all his might he managed to hold it in.

This, however, was too much. Seeing Torterra in pain like this broke Paul's heart to pieces. He very well knew this wasn't Torterra's fault; normally he'd place the blame on his Pokémon, but the pitiful look on its face told Paul everything he needed to know about why he lost this battle. Reggie was right; becoming one with your Pokémon formed a mighty bond. Reggie strongly believed in bonding with Pokémon, ever since he was just a youngster himself. His beliefs mirrored Ash's… so that meant Ash too had synergy with his Pokémon.

Paul had finally seen it; the power of a trainer's connection to their Pokémon. He finally believed in it, but now he was overcome with sorrow. If his connection to Torterra was this faint, there couldn't possibly be any semblance of a connection with the rest of his Pokémon. Was it feasible to form a bond with all of them in a week? Could he bring himself to become so humble? Then again… nothing was more humbling than losing to Brandon in front of all his peers. Paul thought that must have been rock bottom for him, and that things could only get better from there. He was dead wrong: _this_ was rock bottom.

He cried so loudly, that even a mile away Reggie could faintly hear his sobs. Knowing he had broken down completely, his instincts told him to go over and console his brother. However…

"Let him have some time to himself for once."

Reggie froze, hearing that voice and feeling a hand on his shoulder. "Dad…? How long have you…?"

"Long enough," Brandon responded, sounding rather distant. "And I see you have indeed made excellent progress."

If Brandon had said that any other time, Reggie would have been so grateful to hear it. But right now… "But what about Paul, Dad? Can't you hear him? He's…"

Brandon nodded, understanding his son's urgency to run to his brother's aid. Just like his wife… "I won't fault you for not comprehending this, but there are times, son… where we need to be alone. I can tell the boy's been smothered with company for at least a few days; that isn't what he's used to. If he's to ever recover from this slump he's in, he's going to have to do it his way, understand?"

"I… think so," Reggie uneasily answered, still unable to help looking worried. "I just… I can't remember the last time he's cried like this…"

"He cried like this when your mother died," Brandon solemnly mentioned. "Once we finally snapped him out of his catatonic state… the most heartbreaking sound I've ever heard."

It was rather jarring that Brandon was openly talking about the family's darkest days. For the most part, he completely removed himself from those memories in order to cope himself, but it seemed hearing a familiar cry brought him back… because no matter how hard the Pyramid King tried, he could never rid himself of those memories.

"Even before he battled you, something just seemed off about him," Reggie admitted, looking down at the snow. "He told me he chased his friend Conway off, but I don't think that's all…"

"He's obviously hiding something," Brandon agreed. "But especially now, I wouldn't press it, Reggie. Not when he's like this. You're going to have to be patient and let the kid pull himself back together. If you do all the work, he'll feel worthless and codependent."

Brandon knew much about how his sons operated despite rarely seeing them. That was something that even put Reggie off; and he had to wonder…

"Sounds like you've been down this road before," Reggie postulated, trying to sound as neutral as possible.

Admittedly, Brandon was a little shocked Reggie had the nerve to even speculate about his father's past that he knew very little about. What he did know, though, was that Paul definitely took after Brandon. It wasn't a stretch to believe that perhaps Brandon was in this very position a long, long time ago.

"I believe this is all the training you'll get out of him for today," Brandon said, attempting to change the subject. Given the dire nature of the subject he focused on, Reggie was easily swayed. "But now that he's finally letting it all out, the healing can truly begin… as can the progress."

Reggie nodded in agreement. "I'll do whatever I can to make a difference. I just hope he'll listen to me for once…"

"He'll listen," Brandon said, sounding very sure of himself. "The boy has no one else to turn to; in the state he's in, he won't trust himself to progress on his own. So then his only choice is to follow your guidance… if his pride is unable to hold back his true feelings any longer, it won't hold back his desire for help, either. And… whenever I can, I'd like to oversee this progress myself."

"Huh? Really?" Reggie was in mild disbelief, though he remembered his father proved before that he could actually be part of the family when he was needed most. "But… what about your work?"

Brandon looked on at the rubble that once made up the Snowpoint Temple, deep in thought. "My work won't be completed by your brother's deadline regardless of how involved I am. While you two are here, and since a large part of your brother's breakdown is my fault… I feel I owe it to you both to do what I can to make sure the boy's prepared for his battle. He needs to win and see for himself that things aren't as hopeless as they seem to be right now."

"I appreciate it, Dad," Reggie thanked, staring down at the ground as he continued to remain deeply concerned. "Even with the way things are now… I think spending time together will do us all a lot of good."

To that, Brandon could not disagree. "Indeed… this is long overdue, and we are all facing a great problem individually. Coming together may be our only way to persevere…"

The Pokémon Breeder was comforted and heartbroken at the same time. It was a surreal experience, knowing now he'd have his whole family (whole as it can be these days, anyway) together for more than a week. It was like a dream come true… but Reggie couldn't forget the price for this togetherness. The family first united under a dire circumstance… that being Reggie after he was struck by lightning. Now they've come together again, and would stay united to support Paul after his long-overdue nervous breakdown. They would spend the next eight days being the family that Paul had always needed for so long, though he would never admit to that.

Reggie wondered just then… since they would have to part ways in all likelihood once the eight days were up and Brandon certainly wasn't leaving Sinnoh anytime soon… perhaps the three would reunite once more in the distant future? It was just sort of a hunch Reggie had, but given that he correctly foresaw his brother almost losing his life in the subzero depths of Route 216, he had reason to believe there was credence to his theories now.

He could sense a pattern forming; one he could not ignore. After seven – nearly _eight_ long years, the remains of this family reunited under unlikely circumstances in Veilstone City to be there for Reggie himself when he was at his lowest. A little over a month later, here they were now, reunited again in the arctic north of Sinnoh. The odds of these three crossing paths in the most desolate, remote area of the region were virtually nonexistent, but here they were again… as if destiny decreed it to be so. This time, the family became one again to help Paul, who had just hit rock bottom in more ways than one. Just as Reggie recovered both physically and mentally just by having his father and brother at his side, the Pokémon Breeder knew Paul would make a fantastic recovery soon enough.

Taking this into consideration, Reggie could feel that another reunion was imminent. He wasn't sure where or when… but what he did know was that Brandon in terms of stress and coming to terms with impending doom wasn't faring much better than Paul was right now. Brandon simply had much greater experience in keeping his agony buried deep within himself. But regardless of Brandon's fantastic capabilities and accomplishments, he was only human… just like the rest of the world. And like any other person, Reggie knew from both his own experience and seeing Paul now that it was horrifically unhealthy to bottle up so much negativity and misery. Brandon may have a greater capacity to contain such feelings, but one of these days he'd overflow and suffer greatly for it. Whenever that time came, Reggie somehow knew that would be when they'd all be together once again. There would be dire straits just like this reunion and the one before, but it didn't stop Reggie from looking forward to it. The opportunity to truly shine in Brandon's life by directly helping him was something Reggie had always wanted. He never wanted to battle to gain his father's respect; he wanted respect for his true talents. If he could make a difference in Brandon's life by saving it, Reggie would be on top of the world.

He felt a little guilty hoping for that… but strongly as he felt that it would be Brandon's turn next to break down and reconcile with the family, Reggie couldn't shrug it off as a mere feeling. No, this felt very inevitable, and Reggie was determined to be ready for it.

"Don't get your hopes up on getting the kid to confess whatever he's hiding," Brandon warned his eldest son. "He'll tell us when he's ready and no sooner. Just don't assume that he will come out with it simply because we are supporting him right now."

Reggie nodded, a bit let down by the reality of what he was told. "Whenever he decides to be honest with us… I still hope we'll be able to help him. We can't afford to let Paul down again."

Brandon nodded, looking solemn as he took Reggie's words to heart. "We'll do whatever we can… that, at least, is a promise I can keep."

While the two deliberated over what Paul could possibly be hiding, a mile away the youngest member of the family was busy burying the bloody evidence of his secret under the snow. Once Paul had gotten the urge to cry out of his system, he was quickly overcome with the urge to vomit blood, just as badly as the time he'd done so in Candice's Gym. His medication was able to buffer some amount of the pain, but not all of it. At least it prevented him from passing out this time, though he definitely felt like he could at any second.

Torterra winced at the sight, knowing its trainer was going through much more pain and turmoil than it ever could, no matter how badly beaten it was in the battle. Morale throughout Paul's entire team had perished since the dreaded day they learned of their trainer's imminent demise – yet another reason why Paul's battling ability suffered now.

Paul wiped his mouth of the blood that lingered, not bothering to wipe away the tears from his eyes. Frequently as they flowed, and as often as Paul practically dry-heaved every sob that came out from him, he really didn't even feel cold – on the contrary, he was feeling feverish again. Being out in this weather was not good for him; that's what the doctors told Paul, anyway. But Paul was not about to let some arctic chills get in his way. Even at rock bottom, the troubled teenager had no desire to give up. He felt hopeless, had had virtually nothing to go by when it came to his connection with his Pokémon… but Paul would _not_ give up. Not even if he cried…

"You did your best, Torterra," Paul said to his starter, though his voice was beyond hoarse and hollow. He attempted to sound comforting, but it just came off a bit odd coming from him. Despite that, Torterra could pick up on its trainer's words of kindness and took them to heart. If Paul would thank any Pokémon of his for their efforts after being blasted a mile away in defeat, truly this was a sign that Paul was changing for the better. The Continent Pokémon, for all is pain and misery, could rest at ease remembering those words as it was finally recalled back to its Pokéball. Before this, Torterra heard strangled attempts at an apology while Paul cried… so it had no illusions about its hopes for Paul to recover and become a better person for it.

Just as Brandon knew he would, Paul picked himself back off his feet, feeling at least somewhat better emotionally now that he no longer had anything but his own disease to withhold from the people in his life. He turned back around and started to trudge through the snow back to where Reggie waited for him. Paul was a bit shocked to realize Brandon was now present as well.

Many emotions surged through Paul's body as he tried to think of how to address his family once they were face-to-face again. But most of all, Paul couldn't help but feel a bit relieved. The odd, barely-familiar feeling of content and comfort returned, and by now Paul knew it wasn't a coincidence that it only came up with Brandon's presence – now enhanced with Reggie right by his side.

That feeling was Paul's fulfilled desire for his father to be in his life… to acknowledge and care for him like any loving father should. It was true; deep down, Paul did not completely hate Pyramid King Brandon. Much as he wanted to believe that, it simply wasn't true, and even Paul could no longer pretend it was after experiencing these strong feelings. Their civil conversation that morning was a much-needed calm before this storm.

And Paul… found himself wanting more. He wanted to resist that; he knew Brandon wouldn't be here in Sinnoh forever and he knew being pulled away from him again would not be a pleasant time. It was as if Paul's baser instincts were making him regress into the child he used to be; a frightful experience, no doubt.

Despite this… there was something endearing about it. When Paul finally returned to Reggie and Brandon, he stared at them both with his still-leaking eyes. His reddened face was pure evidence of the sobbing fit he had, but Paul didn't bother trying to deny that. He didn't even say a single word… instead, the young trainer walked into the arms of his older brother and father. In one swift motion, Paul embraced them both. He didn't full-on cry again, but Reggie and Brandon could feel his shaky breath against their chests. They knew what Paul needed.

Reggie wrapped one arm around Paul and the other around Brandon, pulling them ever closer together. In the back of the Frontier Brain's mind, there was some freaking-out commencing as Brandon was not the cuddling type in the least.

Then again, neither was Paul.

Without hesitation, Brandon managed to complete the family embrace, mirroring Reggie with one arm around each son, pulling them all into a long overdue and much-needed hug.

Finally, the family made one collective step forward.

* * *

"You mind putting that dumb badge away now? You've been staring at it long enough."

It was sunset, and the duo of Conway and Barry strolled the streets of Hearthome City back to their hotel. It was too late to journey out today, but tomorrow progress would finally be made. At least for one half of the duo; as for the other…

"Envious, much?" Conway teased, though he felt a bit like a jerk for doing so. He couldn't imagine how frustrating it must be to lose to Fantina _again_, which Barry did. He conceded to his partner's wishes and stuck the Relic Badge into his badge case, pocketing it away shortly after. "Well, now that I've defeated Fantina, I can spend some time training you before I aim for my next Gym Battle."

"Don't be taking pity on me," Barry grumbled. "You only barely beat her, you know!"

Conway nodded, fondly remembering his battle. "I'll admit it was a close one, so I can't exactly tease you for losing to someone like her. She is a genuinely difficult challenge."

"Argh, I'm so sick of being in this city," the agitated Barry complained, waving his arms around in frustration. "I mean, the hotel's nice, but we're wasting so much time here! I may not even get to battle Fantina tomorrow; you know how she is! That woman's driving me _nuts!_"

Barry brought up an interesting point: now that Conway earned his Relic Badge, he had no reason to stick around in Hearthome City any longer, and doing so would just squander precious time. Yet Conway felt guilty of the prospect of just abandoning Barry here and now; he wasn't going to settle things with Paul's coldhearted ways no matter how much of a nuisance Barry was.

Conway was ever-thankful to be as clever as he was: he quickly thought of a way around this.

"You know, Barry, the best thing to do about this is perhaps taking a little vacation," the intellectual trainer suggested. "Get your mind off how much this irritates you and expand it with some other sites and experiences. We'll train along the way and get you better-rounded as a result. How does that sound?"

"Hm…" Barry, for once, considered his companion's proposal. "It's true I wanna get out of here… I really want to beat Fantina, but if I've lost to her this many times, I gotta be doing something wrong, right?"

After seeing the desperate and pitiful way Barry attempted to melee her ghost Pokémon into submission, Conway couldn't sugarcoat this in all good conscience. "Maybe not so much as doing something _wrong_ as it is that you must be lacking something. I can't tell you what that is yet, but it would be worth exploring so that you'll be ready for Fantina next time. I strongly recommend altering your strategy for next time, however. From what I witnessed, she seems to have memorized your every move. And you saw with me just how effective the element of surprise is against her."

Barry looked up at the bright orange sky; its hue matching the stripes on his shirt. "Alright, fine. I guess you proved yourself to be pretty cool after all. Let's ditch this place tomorrow, then."

An excellent move of persuasion on Conway's behalf, he had to admit. Now he was free to continue his journey without Barry completely slowing him down. "Agreed. Perhaps you could teach me a thing or two, even?"

"You want to learn stuff from me?" Barry sounded almost humbled at the prospect. "You're not joking, right?"

"I'm quite sincere," Conway insisted. "I was thinking perhaps a city we won't have to travel too far away to reach so we can come back here quickly when you're relaxed and ready to face Fantina again. Is there a Pokémon Gym nearby that you've already conquered, by any chance?"

"Hm…?" Barry pulled open his badge case, looking over the few he earned. "Well, let's see. I got a Mine Badge from beating Byron, but Canalave City's a long way from here…"

Conway saw firsthand how tough of a fight Byron could be. Despite his feats, he was pretty certain he wasn't quite ready yet to take on the man of steel. "Mm, yes. That's a bit too far. Try something that won't take a week just to reach."

"Ah, I got it!" a very excited Barry exclaimed, pulling out a Forest Badge from his case. "How about Eterna City? I beat the Gym Leader there, and with my help I think you can totally take her on. Whaddya say?"

"That actually sounds like a good idea," Conway said with a smile. "The lady there is a Grass-type specialist, correct?" Barry nodded in affirmation. "Then it's settled: we'll set course for Eterna City first thing in the morning."

Barry sighed with relief. "Anything for a change of scenery… pretty good idea, Conway. Can't deny that…"

There was an awkward silence following that. Barry inadvertently reminded himself of something important he wanted to discuss. "By the way, you looked really mad at me during that Gym Battle, you know?"

Conway knew this dreaded topic was coming; best to get it over with and out of the way. "I thought we've thoroughly discussed the matter of not using my real name in public, Barry. I will attach a sticky note on your forehead to remind you every day if that's what it takes. You seem to not realize how important this is."

"What's the big deal, huh?" Barry asked, wanting some answers _now_. "It's like you're lying to the entire world except me, you know?"

"I didn't want _you_ knowing my real name, either," Conway bitterly told him. "But that couldn't be helped. If you promise not to get involved, Barry, I'll tell you someday when it's appropriate… all I can tell you now is that I'm on… you might call it an "undercover mission" of sorts, and it's direly important that my identity is not to be compromised."

Barry blinked, silent for a moment before comprehending his cohort's words. "So you're kinda like a spy, is that what you're saying?"

"… Yes, let's go with that," Conway decided, rolling his eyes. "And you know how important it is for a spy to maintain their stealth and disguise at all times, right?"

"Well yeah, what kinda spy just spills all their secrets in front of everybody and tells them they're a spy?" Barry rhetorically asked. "So… wait a minute. Are you a good spy or a bad spy?"

He might as well have been asking Conway if he was a good witch or a bad witch.

"I'm on the side of good, of course," Conway answered, adamant about his stance. "Do I really seem evil to you, Barry?"

Barry actually had to take time to think about this. "I guess not… I mean, you're really weird and all, but you're also a huge wuss. I guess you'd have to be a good guy… just a really lame one."

It was like sticking a bare hand in a thorny bush to grab a delicious piece of fruit; Barry was just that difficult about giving his companion a compliment. Conway wouldn't let himself get upset over it, however. He knew Barry wasn't the sharpest knife in the drawer… his comments couldn't be taken seriously half the time.

"I'll tell you more later," Conway tiredly assured. "It's been a long day for both of us… let's just order a big room service dinner and rest up for the journey tomorrow."

"Sounds like my kind of plan!" Barry agreed, grinning. "Say, I never pegged you as a guy who'd be into Contests, either. You were never in one, for real?"

Conway blinked, looking confused. "Where is this all coming from, if I may ask? Seems a bit out of left field."

"When you were battling Fantina, duh!" Barry scoffed, as if Conway were the stupid one. "That one move you did with Aggron _did_ look a lot like a Contest move! "

"I suppose I drew a lot of inspiration from that sweet girl Dawn," Conway said, feigning assumption. He quickly regretted saying that, however, as Barry instantly smirked back at him.

"Hah! You're into Dawn, huh? Can't say I'm surprised," Barry said with a laugh. "You're both losers for getting crushed by Paul; you'd be a perfect match! Haha!"

Conway was a well-rounded master of keeping his cool, but not this time. Dawn remained to be his critical weak point even though he'd officially given up all hope of having a chance with her. Consequently, his face quickly turned as red as a Tamato Berry. He couldn't even come up with anything to say in rebuttal before Barry opened his mouth again.

"But good luck with that, man. It's not official yet, but Dawn's about to be taken," Barry informed his lowly partner. "You missed the boat by not being a Coordinator."

And just like that, Conway's professional composure was shattered as he looked desperately at Barry. "W-wait, what are you talking about?"

"Well, I got this buddy of mine named Kenny," Barry said, completely casual and relaxed. "He's from Twinleaf Town like me and Dawn. He's been Dawn's friend since like kindergarten or something… but anyway, yeah. He's a Coordinator, and he said he's gonna win the whole Grand Festival this year just to prove himself to Dawn! I mean hey, I like Kenny and all, but the dude can be such a pile of mush! If you want Dawn, you gotta get through him. I don't think anyone can out-do him in the mush department, though."

"She has… someone else…?" Conway had no idea. Never did this possibility even occur to him. He didn't even consider Ash as real competition because he seemed so completely oblivious to anything related to romance.

Barry pointed a finger directly at Conway's face. "Hey, weren't you listening? I said they're not together _yet._ But they might as well be, I guess. It's not like you're gonna be her romantic rival in the Grand Festival or anything, and you've met her like, what, one time?"

"Twice," Conway said through gritted teeth. The truth stung like a million Beedrill at once.

"Okay, whatever, _twice_," Barry conceded in a mocking tone. "That's still nothing compared to like, most of Dawn's natural life. What's more powerful than a childhood friendship romance? I sure can't think of one."

But then again, Barry didn't think much about romance to begin with. He just knew his friend Kenny was determined to make Dawn his. Conway didn't exactly come off as a Casanova, so odds are he wouldn't be sweeping Dawn off her feet with his charms alone.

"I guess I'll have to think of one," Conway mumbled to himself. Barry vaguely heard it and leaned in close, putting a hand against his ear to clearly hear his buddy's words.

"Come again?" Barry asked, ever-so invasively. Conway simply backed away, looking completely conflicted.

What was he doing, even thinking about striking back? He could no longer afford to be a Coordinator. He was supposed to be dead to the world, including his closest friends and loved ones. There were more important things to do right now than dwell on an unrequited crush being picked up and carried away by a sudden love rival. Conway didn't get it; why was he caring this much? He'd done so well to swear off his family, and he thought he expelled any hope of charming Dawn a while ago. But the very second he learned of Kenny's existence, the flare of love burned brightly once more.

"Hey, don't be clamming up on me now!" Barry demanded, playfully knocking Conway on the head with his fist. "What's going on in that weirdo head of yours? I'm gonna fine you if you don't start talking; I'm serious!"

There was an abrupt and awkward silence as Conway grabbed Barry by the wrist – specifically the hand that was bonking his head – and forced a credit card in his hand.

"Order whatever you want," Conway offered in a low voice. "I… need to be alone tonight."

He actually seemed _depressed_; what was this? Barry wasn't getting it. "Uh… but what about you? You need dinner, too!"

"I believe I've lost my appetite," Conway hollowly answered before briskly walking away. He was long gone before Barry could utter out a verbal reaction.

"Geez… was it something I said?" Barry wondered out loud, scratching his head while looking down at the credit card given to him. "Oh well. Looks like I get to fine him big time tonight; more food for me!"

* * *

One highly emotional day gave way to a week of nothing but pure business. Paul and Reggie became stronger day by day; Paul focused on connecting with his Pokémon while Reggie's overall power grew all the more as they assisted their father in the cleanup and rebuilding of the Snowpoint Temple. The restoration project was finally underway by the middle of the week, giving Brandon more time to spend with his sons. It was surreal, yet genuine quality time that all three of them desperately needed, whether they knew it or not. Conway and Barry got sidetracked on their way to Eterna City, but for their troubles, both acquired new Pokémon: the Bug and Rock-typed Shuckle for Conway, who aimed to use it in the fight against Gym Leader Gardenia – and Skarmory for Barry at Conway's suggestion for a wider variety in Barry's Pokémon team.

Great progress was made for all parties involved, but would it be enough to resolve their individual problems?

Only time will tell…

* * *

**( TBC ) **


	18. The Worst of Messes Become Successes!

**( Notes:**

**Wow, so this is what... almost seven months since the last update? That really is unforgivable. That's still sorta on par with how often I updated stories prior to this one, but that's still just baaaa-aaad. But, as per usual there's a multitude of reasons for the super-long delay. I don't want to rant too long about it because you all have a lot of reading ahead of you here (this is the NEW longest chapter of the fic! man I hope this doesn't become a trend), but since the last chapter was released at the end of January, you all can guess Pokemon White had something to do with the delays. I also got a 3DS recently and got a couple of games for that, and originally I wanted this chapter done by April but I was a moron and forgot that April's like the busiest month of the year where I work. I've also been super-slammed with work this month, too. But I finally got to a point where I can start writing the story at home again, at least! I've been through a number of screwy health issues, plus there's the fact that this is yet another adaptation chapter (thankfully this is the last FULL one until chapter 27) for TWO episodes, so there were shenanigans with me finding and downloading torrents of both episodes, getting a program to change their file formats so they'd go on my iPod, then write full transcripts of both episodes, and then finally work on the fic itself. I really am getting sick of the adaptation stuff at this point and sadly there's really nothing much here except expanded versions of _Pedal to the Mettle!_ and _Evolving Strategies!_, but on the plus side this chapter features my first REAL writing experiment with Team Rocket with my own written dialog! Hopefully I've represented Meowth's accent in a way that won't totally annoy you, and I was going for a mix of how the dub makes them alliteratingly annoying and yet witty with my own writing style at the same time. So feel free to tell me how that turned out; not that TR's gonna get all that much focus beyond this chapter anyway, but it's nice to know how I'm pulling other canon characters besides our main cast out well.**

**For the record, I still loathe the _Black & White_ anime series. Anyway, to make up for this ghastly delay, I don't plan on taking a huge-ass break from the fic before starting the next chapter like I usually do. I really wanted to write for Barry and Conway and it was frustrating knowing I wouldn't be able to this time around. Next time will be different, however. Next time will be better! **

**But until next time, try and enjoy the pitiful offering I give to you after making you all wait over half a year for new material. Oh, and I appreciate whoever put this story up for fanfic recommendations on TV Tropes! That really did make my week. )**

* * *

"We've got him now; Marowak, use Earthquake and follow up with Double-Edge!"

"… Ursaring…"

Progress had been made with Paul and Reggie's intense training that lasted over a week's time. In times like this, though, the improvements were not at all obvious. It seemed, more or less, that Paul was exactly as weak as he'd been when the training commenced.

Once the fateful day was waiting in the wings within a mere twenty-four hours, Paul and Reggie bid their father and his associates farewell and departed northbound to Lake Acuity. Reggie's van proved to get his brother to their destination more quickly than rival Ash Ketchum's method of transport: by train. Granted, there had been an unscheduled stop and some suspicious shenanigans along that trip. Ash and company even got the privilege to meet the private detective, Looker. At that point they were unaware that this would not be the last time they'd meet… as it was shown that the delay of the train was the doing of the northbound Team Galactic.

Not that any of this was relevant to Paul; he was merely thankful to have reached Lake Acuity first. This gave him the opportunity to get some last-minute training with Reggie in, which was what they were doing right now. Nurse Joy of the Lake Acuity Pokémon Center graciously allowed the two to use the open field near the building to have a quick battle while they waited for Ash.

While Paul was grateful to have one last opportunity to prepare, his morale remained just as dead as it had been for the past week. Despite the progress he made, Paul never once defeated Reggie in any of their practice battles. From the looks of things, Paul was about to lose this battle as well.

Reaction time went against the broken trainer once again as Ursaring was slammed hard by two strong, brutal attacks in succession. Paul looked away with shame, unable to bear watching the Hibernator Pokémon falling to the ground with a tremor-inducing thud. No doubt it was unable to battle.

"Excellent job as always," Reggie congratulated his Marowak, giving an approving nod. However, upon noticing the massive damage he'd done to the battlefield itself, Reggie quickly became flustered. "Oh… wow… we still don't know our own strength, it seems…"

That didn't particularly bother Marowak, of course. Seeing the results of using its power to its maximum potential did much for the Bone Keeper Pokémon's confidence. Unlike his brother, Reggie's progress had been quite noticeable and even the modest Pokémon Breeder couldn't honestly be down on himself and his chances against Brandon when all signs were telling him that he undoubtedly had achieved the level of power he once had going into the Kanto Battle Frontier before he was even fifteen years old. With that hurdle overcome, Reggie would only get even stronger from here on out. The fact that Brandon went out of his way to commend his firstborn son for his progress (something that rarely ever happened in the eighteen years Reggie had been alive) meant that things were undeniably looking up for the Pokémon Breeder at last.

On the flipside, there was Paul… the past half-month for him had been little more than an unglamorous losing streak. Since the day Paul was forced to participate in a Pokémon Contest – just before he and Conway went their separate ways – the crueler of the two brothers hadn't won a single battle.

Granted, Paul made it all the way as a runner-up in his very first Pokémon Contest before losing to his former companion; most trainers who actually _aspire_ to be Pokémon Coordinators rarely perform that well on their first Contest. Paul not only achieved a fantastic rank despite his lack of love for this potential career path, but he did so having less than a day's time to undergo a crash course in how Pokémon Contests work. In that timeframe he also had to pick the two Pokémon he'd be using in his appeal and battle rounds, _create_ a visually stunning appeal to get past the preliminary round (a true feat for Paul since he wasn't exactly the creative type), adjust his battling style to fit better with the Contest constraints, and make a strategy on the fly to combat the Coordinators much more experienced than him in order to get to Conway in the finals.

Had the two rude girls he met the day before the Plumeria Contest not gotten under his skin, Paul might have not had the drive to overcome the odds. Still, it was a pity he cared so little for Contests… this was the high point of Paul's slump, undoubtedly. Perhaps it didn't help that the experience was still a humiliating one for Paul, and throughout the whole thing he was televised. Since Reggie and Maylene caught the broadcast and identified him, Paul would have a very difficult time living this down for years to come. If nothing else, he could take solace in the fact that it seemed Ash and his friends didn't catch sight of the Plumeria Contest; otherwise Ash or especially Dawn would have mentioned it at some point during the two days they had the opportunity to do so.

The next loss on the streak was also a point where Paul was still performing decently despite this taking place shortly after his illness began to make itself known. Again, Paul made it all the way to the finals in Squallville's PokéRinger competition and even managed to make short work of the man perceived as the biggest threat given his status as a multi-time PokéRinger champion. That earned him some credibility, especially in the eyes of his father who watched the competition on TV (something Brandon neglected to bring up to Paul for all the time they spent together). Still, to Paul it didn't mean that much when it was _Ash_ who ultimately defeated him and won the whole competition. That was the very first time Ash made a decisive win over Paul in anything; the fact that it wasn't a proper battle, however, allowed Paul to cope with the loss without too much trouble. Like the Contest, Paul didn't have much heart in the PokéRinger competition, so arguably he wasn't trying his best. There were more pressing matters on Paul's mind at the time, and this was before Paul had prescribed medication to deal with his body's aches and pains that came and went throughout that day. The more Paul thought back on that particular loss now, though, the more concerned he became with Ash's growing abilities as a whole.

Things really went downhill when Paul finally made it to Snowpoint City. Though Paul's landslide loss to Candice was mainly on account of the fact that he was exhausted, severely ill, impatient, and lacking a strategy (being too prideful to consider using the one Conway helped make for him), it had been a _long_ time since Paul last had his entire team utterly decimated by a Gym Leader… who used only one Pokémon to do all that. Paul wrongly assumed Candice would be a much easier challenge than Byron and paid a heavy price for his arrogance. Not only did he lose against her in front of several children who mocked him from the very beginning, but the moment Paul's last Pokémon was rendered unable to battle was the moment his illness took precedence over everything else in his life… whether Paul wanted it that way or not.

Three humiliating losses in, Paul could no longer run away from the fact that he'd be losing more than just his pride if he continued to push himself too hard. The diagnosis of his terminal illness forced the young trainer to take time out of his training to take care of himself.

However adversely this affected Paul, he was not deterred to press on without a change of plans. Once he was released from the hospital, he spent the next few days training so that he would be able to defeat Candice next time. But before Paul had the chance to break his losing streak, there was Ash Ketchum, in his way as usual. Because of him, the battle was postponed, and Paul felt a piece of his pride wither away and die when he learned that Ash had already defeated Candice… on the first try… and that victory put Ash _ahead_ of Paul in badge count. Paul couldn't remember if that was ever the case since their Sinnoh journey began, but it was yet another reason to be nervous of Ash's progress. Still, Paul retained the ever-slightest bit of optimism that Ash wouldn't get in his way the following day, he'd defeat Candice in their rematch, and his losing streak would end.

And then Pyramid King Brandon came in to say hello.

This was combined with the surprise of having Reggie's company (thus putting Paul under pressure he couldn't afford to endure, considering everything he was keeping a secret from his family), _then_ becoming enlightened of Ash's Battle Frontier accomplishments – including the defeat of his own father before the rivals ever crossed paths. By now Paul's pride was being met with killing blows at every corner, overwhelming the troubled trainer with doubt. There was a chance to redeem himself, Paul believed… and it conveniently tied in with the promise he made with his father in Veilstone City. He wanted to show Ash _and_ Reggie firsthand that he could do anything they could (or couldn't, in Reggie's case). This seemed to be the ticket out of Paul's rut for certain.

But ultimately, this resulted in Paul's most devastating defeat yet. In front of his rival, his rival's friends, his brother, and the Gym Leader who shut him down once already, Paul was soundly beaten by this own father without defeating any of his Pokémon. As if that weren't bad enough, Paul's greatest weakness was exposed during that battle… and it was something that couldn't be merely brushed away. With no clue as to what motivated him now beyond revenge, Paul felt completely helpless, and that was reflected in how he battled for the majority of the ten-day period before his scheduled full battle with Ash.

There was only one way to see any positives in this low period of Paul's life: when he finally stopped holding back his sorrows and broke down into a sobbing fit during the first day of training. That moment was the lowest Paul could get, meaning from then on it could only get better. To a degree, things did improve. Though he still couldn't defeat his brother, Paul's Pokémon were indeed growing stronger with each passing day. Strategies were tossed around as well as techniques and move experimentations; safe to say Paul had been preparing much more thoroughly than Ash for the upcoming battle.

Ever since Paul was found to be unwell by the doctors of Squallville, he was in complete and utter denial of the whole thing. It was easier for him to say there was nothing wrong with him, even though Paul knew deep down that wasn't true. He isolated himself from not only Conway, but everyone else as best he could. He left the medical facilities of Squallville at the first opportunity, barely said a word to Ash during the PokéRinger tournament, and took the dangerous, rarely-traveled route to Snowpoint City just to avoid the rest of the world. The last thing Paul wanted was complete strangers making comments about how "sick" he looked. Whatever they claimed about him, Paul wasn't seeing it, but only because he didn't _want_ to see it.

Anger was second nature to Paul even without his grievances. He was quick to fly into a rage both in his battle with Candice _and_ Brandon. Paul was even savage enough to feign suicidal tendencies just to get Candice out of his hair. At the same time, when Brandon came into the picture after Ash revealed his victory over the Pyramid King, Paul saw a small window of opportunity for bargain; after all, if an overly-emotional novice like _Ash_ could defeat Brandon, then logically Paul ought to be able to do the same. For a short time he thought that perhaps he and Reggie overestimated the challenge ahead for them. If Paul could defeat Brandon and endure the trials brought about by his faulty genetic code, then Paul could believe himself to be in not such a bad state after all. Though a far-fetched one, it was a bargain that Paul could not pass up.

Unfortunately, the trainer in turmoil could not hold up his end of the bargain. Paul's anger – his _rage_ – completely consumed his entire being. All Paul could think about as he faced his father on the battlefield was how much he _hated_ the Pyramid King. Try as he did to turn that hatred into power, it backfired on him… and in the end, Paul was made out to be the fool. Anger clouded his senses, preventing him from acting reasonably or giving up when it had already been clear that Brandon had won. Paul was perfectly capable of doing that much with Cynthia – surrounded by snotty young trainers as spectators who mocked the cocky challenger all the while – and overall he carried himself very professionally back then when he surrendered after losing four of his six Pokémon to the Sinnoh Champion.

When it came right down to it, Paul more or less lost to Brandon for the same reason as his brother:

Neither were able to fully view the Pyramid King as a Frontier Brain; a challenger; an opponent.

All they saw facing them on the battlefield was the stone-cold glare of a father who refused to acknowledge his own flesh and blood; not even when he was needed the most.

Brandon's situation only made Paul angrier, just after the brief moment where the rage subsided and the second son started to see his father in a different light, even expressing concern for his wellbeing when they learned about the tragic events at the Snowpoint Temple. One night to sleep off the anxiety brought about the calm before the next storm in Paul's dramatic saga of grief. He managed to hold a civil conversation with Brandon for the first time since he could remember. Knowing that he had his family supporting him for this upcoming battle with Ash brought great comfort to the conflicted trainer.

Then reality dealt him another harsh blow as it was shown that Reggie had become vastly more powerful than his little brother. True as it may be that the brothers were in this together, there had always been a subtle sibling rivalry even since the two were toddlers… though inarguably this "rivalry" was felt much more strongly by Paul. Being the little brother of the equation, of course Paul inherently felt the need to prove something to Reggie. But Reggie was about the most passive big brother anybody could meet – it seemed everyone who came across both Reggie and Paul would quickly note the vast differences between them. Truly, at first, Ash and his friends were stunned with disbelief from the very idea that the two were even related. At least they vaguely shared some of the same genetics based on appearance, though there was no debate as to who was the better-looking brother – Reggie, naturally. Paul put little to no importance on appearance to begin with, so being inferior in this department didn't really bother him… annoying as it had been in the past to see Reggie get all the attention from the occasional passerby in town because of his looks matching his sweet and innocent nature.

To be fair, Paul had every reason to believe that in terms of power with his Pokémon team, he must have been close to Reggie's level. Reggie hadn't actively trained in four years, though a minor bit of training was part of his job as a Pokémon Breeder – but in that case it was to keep the baby Pokémon fit, in shape, and capable of defending themselves. Paul was two Sinnoh Gym Badges and six Battle Frontier Symbols short of matching Reggie's accomplishments exactly. In the grand scheme of things, that wasn't much given the twenty-four badges Paul already earned from previous regions (including the Indigo, Silver, and Ever Grande Conferences). Six Sinnoh badges put Paul up to thirty total against Reggie's thirty-two. Since Paul had been training practically every day from the very moment he became a Pokémon Trainer onward whilst Reggie spent the past four years doing nothing to hone his skills, it was perfectly reasonable for Paul to believe he stood a chance in surpassing his brother. If he could at least prove to be a better trainer than Reggie, then he'd be content. All other aspects of life that Reggie was superior to his brother in would be irrelevant.

But now it had been over a week since the two started training for the upcoming battle ahead. After the first major loss, Paul's willpower shattered as he sunk into a deep depression. It had been a challenge to hold all of that in while being surrounded by several of his peers, but realizing how weak his connection to his own starter was what finally broke Paul down. Though he hadn't faltered with his training, with every defeat Paul suffered to Reggie as the days went by, his misery intensified. Everything seemed absolutely _hopeless_ now… the day before, Paul even wondered if there was a point to any of this. Suffering loss after loss, Paul was unable to see that light at the end of the tunnel. Surely, having hit rock bottom now, he'd be seeing signs of things turning up. The fact that his Pokémon were growing stronger considerably through this lengthy training session was lost on the listless young man. Reggie (or Brandon) would shake Paul out of his daze just to keep him going, but even the family's efforts couldn't keep Paul grounded permanently.

Since the day Paul went back to traveling solo, his life had been full of strife and suffering. The long road of woe and heartbreak seemed to be without end. There were just too many problems weighing Paul down for him to focus for a good deal of the week…

… And all that was left for Paul now was to accept the terms forever imposed on his life. But Paul was never one to merely "accept" things such as weakness, ineptitude, or failure. In the past, he was quick to release his Pokémon back into the wild if _any_ of them exhibited such unforgivable traits. Was this karmic retribution for those Pokémon, for Paul to embody all of the traits he loathed above all else? Genetically, Paul _was_ the definition of weakness. Nothing he could say or do would ever change that, for this label was imposed on Paul the moment he was born.

Now Paul wondered how his late mother coped with this disease… how long she went about her life before her body's limitations chained her down permanently. He was too young to truly remember his mother prior to her death, though the dream he had weeks ago after suffering a near-death experience seemed a little too familiar and a bit too _real_ to be a mere hallucination. Since having that chance reunion with his own family doctor from years past, Paul had been thinking of his mother far more than ever before. She was truly the only person who Paul could have turned to for aid in this matter, but obviously that would not be feasible now. But after thinking about her this much, he couldn't help but ask himself… just how much did his mother know about _his_ health? If this disease could be passed down genetically, certainly there must have been some concern from both parents way back when they considered having children.

It was easy to assume that with Reggie being born completely disease-free, Brandon and Andrea's fears were put to rest, which would explain Paul's existence even if he wasn't as fortunate in his genetic inheritance. But what made them bold enough to have Reggie in the first place…? Whenever Paul was ready to come clean with the truth to his family, he would be sure to ask Brandon these questions. Now that the family had finally grown closer, hopefully Brandon would be more willing to talk about the past and his late wife. It wouldn't be any easier to talk about for the aging trainer even after a few years short of a decade have passed, but logically it should be best to talk about the largest loss of his life – millions of times more painful than the loss of Regigigas and its cohorts – to the only two people in the world who felt the exact same pain as he did. As Reggie would adamantly agree, this was a topic had wrongly been pushed aside for a long time. Where the one who followed in his mother's footsteps wanted to remember Andrea fondly, talk about her, and believed embracing her memory would be the best remedy for moving on, Brandon and Paul believed the opposite.

Ironically, the Pyramid King who represented the _Brave_ Symbol was the one who thought the best way to come to terms with the untimely loss of his wife was to run away from it all; distance himself from everything that reminded him of his one and only lost love. However, he did at least remain brave in one particular way: Andrea had known of her fate since she was younger than Paul was now, but she purposefully hid it from her peers mostly for the same reasons her son did. But by her late teens, she confessed her secret to Brandon. The two had known each other since they were old enough to be Pokémon Trainers, and over the years they became rather close. As they matured, so did their feelings. Andrea kept quiet about her fate, fearing Brandon would turn away from her and go astray for obvious reasons. It was selfish yet understandable, but the moment Brandon started talking to her about marriage and children, Andrea knew she had to come clean. Then the future was put in Brandon's hands, but the choice he made was lead by his heart as he came to understand that even an incurable disease wouldn't come between his feelings for the only woman he ever fell in love with. Children were an obvious concern still, as both wanted at least one or two.

Another of many unrevealed details Brandon withheld from his sons during their time together was how the two came to be; Reggie was every bit as aware as Brandon that his mother was sick during his childhood, though he found out through observation first before being told. If Paul was curious about how they came to be just now, rest assured Reggie had been wondering that for a much longer time and still wanted that answer himself. It was hard to be patient for Brandon sometimes… but it was evident that the Frontier Brain may be the only way Paul could get any form of closure in regards to his fate. His father was the key to the ability to truly accept the burden; Paul just _hated_ it whenever he _needed_ his father. A pity he developed that sort of trait when a parent should always be counted on regardless, but this family, even with all their progress made, would never _truly_ be normal.

"Paul…?"

Paul blinked, snapping out of his daze to look to his brother, who was suddenly right next to him. "Hm?" He had no idea what just happened.

"You did it again," Reggie pointed it out, smiling warmly. "Today's the day, Paul… there really is no time to get lost in thought now. I think we've got just enough time to squeeze in one more practice before Ash and the others get here; what do you say?"

Overcome with the sudden irrational fear that Reggie was onto his secret, Paul shied away from his brother, looking down hatefully. "Do you even _want_ me to win, Reggie…?" Another thing he had doubts about during the week.

"Would I have spent more than a week training you all this time if I didn't?" Reggie softly assured him, patting him on the shoulder. This question, while coming out of left field, wasn't exactly an unexpected thing for him to hear from his little sibling. Even Reggie knew of Paul's jealousy issues, and bore witness many a time to his less-than-pleasant nature brought about by it. Paul never had one nice thing to say about Ash for all the time they talked about him, and once they were in Ash's presence together, Reggie could see just how steep this rivalry was. Rarely did Paul let himself be bothered by another trainer, much less one he deemed inferior to him. If just being around Ash made him that antagonistic, Reggie could imagine Paul expected one of his only allies in life to treat the young man with the same vitriol.

But that simply wasn't in Reggie's nature, especially if Ash hadn't really done anything wrong. Even so, jealousy flared in Paul at the very thought of Reggie being civil to those people, let alone being considered a friend. In his state, Paul's tolerance was particularly low now, so he was not about to accept anything even _remotely_ like treachery from his own family.

"Fine, whatever," Paul quickly relented. He only did so because he agreed that his final moments before the match shouldn't be squandered; never before had he _dreaded_ the prospect of battling Ash so much. And this was not dread of the "oh, this is a waste of time" caliber like it usually was; obviously even now Paul feared that he would lose to his rival today for the first time in a _real_ traditional, decisive battle. It was hard for the coldhearted teen still to rely on his own judgment after everything that had happened; he still wasn't sure what was what anymore and what exactly this disease was doing to make him suddenly inept.

Though still miserable, the only thing that resembled obvious progress to Paul outside of his Pokémon's levels was how it was easier for him to keep himself under control. In other words, he found himself able to control his emotions. It took that breakdown where Paul had been holding everything back for the longest time to make it possible: it was painful, but liberating.

"Only… that may be impossible to do here," Reggie muttered as he took a good look around at the bang-up job his Marowak had done to the field. The last Earthquake attack really shook up some unstable ground, and consequently the entire field looked like a tornado had hit the place. "Wow, I really do need to be careful from now on," he realized, looking concerned. "This would take all day to fix up to the point where you and Ash could battle here…"

"Then we obviously need to relocate," Paul decided, already packing up and ready to move. "Come on; we don't have time to fix this."

Reggie followed suit, but looked a bit guilty in doing so. "I feel bad dropping this responsibility on someone else, but I guess we don't have a choice. Let's get your Pokémon healed up first; we can tell Nurse Joy to relay the news to Ash when he gets here so he'll know where to find us. At this point, there's no sense in roughing up your team just before he gets here, so we'll just settle for routine training from here on out. We can find a nice place right next to the lake to battle at, and…"

"Can you not walk and talk at the same time?" Paul interrupted, already having his brother's belongings packed up as well. "Let's _go_, already."

Impatient as always… Reggie just laughed awkwardly as he went over to take what was his and walk off with Paul towards the Pokémon Center nearby. "Somebody sounds anxious, aha…"

Paul refused to respond to that. As the two stepped into the Pokémon Center, a certain agitated Meowth burst out of one of the bushes that encircled the trashed battlefield. "How're d'ose two related? They ain't even close enough ta' be _adopted_ bros…!"

His comrades, lowly Team Rocket grunts Jessie and James were quick to pop out at the same time and clamp the Scratch Cat Pokémon's mouth shut with their hands.

"Pipe down before I relate to the idea of _zipping_ your mouth shut!" Jessie threatened. "Now try and adopt some stealth!"

"As if you smotherin' me's good fer my health," Meowth muttered as he freed himself from his teammates' grasp.

James was never as much into asserting authority as Jessie; as such, his eyes were often wandering elsewhere for opportunities to aid their mission. He was quick to spot one right in front of them. "Speaking of our health, I do believe I see an opportunity for some income."

"Income, you say?" Jessie was immediately interested, ceasing her feud with Meowth immediately to look around for what James had in mind.

"D'en let's seize tha' day!" Meowth proclaimed. As he looked around, he immediately had his doubts. "Hang on, what're ya implyin'?"

Now that no one was out to spot them, James stepped out of the bush and pointed directly at the disaster area before them. "Do you remember what the rude twerp's brother said? This mess here is our ticket to one hefty paycheck!"

"Of course your idea is manual labor," Jessie muttered; her spirits dampened. "And since we're beggars, we can't be choosers."

"If it's inspiration you need, remember just one thing!" James sung out. "We're here in Sinnoh to give Team Rocket a name. And no matter how many times we're blasted off, we will never be defeated when it comes to our work ethic!"

Meowth smirked, agreeing with his comrade. "D'at's what da' boss likes most of all! So get wit' da' program, Jess; we gotta do what we gotta do!"

Though Jessie was enough of a tyrant for her one vote to count for triple in these situations, for once she considered the logic behind this move… the only thing that could really sway Jessie into going along with the others was her hunger. Right now, Jessie's stomach decided to betray its own host and go along with the boys this time.

She sighed with resignation. "As long as we don't have to deal with any twerp interference, I suppose this is a time that calls for getting our hands dirty… just let _me_ do the negotiating, though. You two couldn't haggle us a salary that could earn our stomachs anything more than _crackers_ for dinner. _I'll_ make sure we dine like royalty tonight!"

"D'en we got our plan!" Meowth conceded, ready to get to work.

"To our disguise stash!" James announced, as their very unconvincing (yet highly effective) disguise routine was _always_ step one in all of their schemes.

While the trio made arrangements and were well underway to earning themselves an honest paycheck, the "twerps" they so dreaded to deal with (yet their long-lived desire to capture that special Pikachu and present it to their boss kept them nearby them most of the time regardless) had just arrived to the site of Lake Acuity; the area's Pokémon Center was within view.

Ash Ketchum, with Brock and Dawn backing him, was ready to face his rival. Already having a technical win against him recently under his belt in addition to the pitiful state Ash had seen Paul in while they visited Brandon made Ash feel a bit _lucky _today. He knew it wouldn't be easy to do so, but having witnessed Paul at one of his lowest points and finally knowing how that cold, calm demeanor of his could break… for the first time in ages, Ash truly felt like this would be the day he would finally defeat Paul in a traditional Pokémon battle. He knew Chimchar was ready too, and together they would both finally prove Paul wrong in every slanderous thing he said about the two in the past.

It had been a long time since he last had a full battle as well; seeing one not long ago made Ash even more eager to get this battle underway.

"Finally, Lake Acuity. Wow…" Ash marveled, giving the area a look-around. It wasn't common for Ash to pause and take in the scenery before engaging in a long-awaited battle, but this time was a bit of a special case. Pikachu also appreciated the view from its partner's shoulder.

A soft lake breeze blew by the group before the significance of this place was realized by Dawn. "Ah… you know, I just remembered; there's supposed to be a legendary Pokémon at Lake Acuity as well."

Brock smiled at the mention. "That's right, Uxie. Yeah."

"Right," Ash recalled from the time he was at Lake Valor after having seen the vague visage of Azelf, where then Dawn confessed of her own similar experience at Lake Verity at the beginning of her journey with Mesprit. Knowing the legendary pixies were out there somewhere watching over them… "And that means Uxie could be watching Paul and me when we're having our battle!"

Pikachu uttered a thoughtful "Pika…" at Ash's postulation. Before anyone else could chip in, Ash quickly realized something else.

"Hey, let's get over there!" he called out to his friends. "If I know Paul, he's already waitin'!"

With a follow-up from his Pikachu, Ash and his friends made their way along the perimeter of Lake Acuity, approaching the Pokémon Center. Each mind was filled with anxiety and curiosity as to how things would turn out by sundown.

* * *

"Make sure they're fine, please?"

"Pikachu!"

The Nurse Joy of Lake Acuity (bearing a golden yellow cross on her cap; likely an homage to Uxie, who was of a similar color) smiled with a nod. "Of course; I'd be happy to." Her Chansey was also eager to serve, right behind her partner.

As Nurse Joy took the tray of Ash's five Pokéballs (plus Pikachu) to check up on, Brock zoomed to the front to intervene… to the surprise of nobody whatsoever.

"Won't you please make sure I'm fine too?" Brock begged as if his life depended on it. "Or maybe I could just make sure you're fine instead!"

Also to the surprise of no one was Brock howling in pain as he felt a sharp pain in his side (usually better than where he usually got punishment) and fell over. Ash and Dawn expected this to be Croagunk's handiwork when they saw the Toxic Mouth Pokémon already out with a Poison Jab charged just for its trainer. But to their surprise, for once, Croagunk wasn't the one laying down the law on Brock this time; Nurse Joy's Chansey had beaten Croagunk to the punch – literally – and was the one to tame Brock for today. She looked positively exasperated at the aspiring Pokémon Breeder who fell flat on his face as he reeled in pain.

"Sorry," Nurse Joy awkwardly apologized. "But Chansey can be quite aggressive towards people who approach me in a certain way…" Unlike most of her kin, this Nurse Joy seemed more wary of people who might try to pursue her.

"Huh…" Ash remarked as he watched Croagunk drag the immobilized Brock off, anyway. As his mind wandered, his eyes snapped back to Nurse Joy as an important question came to him just then. "Uh, Nurse Joy, do you know if a trainer named Paul from Veilstone City's gotten here yet?"

"As a matter of fact, Paul already arrived here earlier and I'm taking care of his Pokémon right now." Or at least the ones Paul and Reggie had on hand that weren't participating in the battle and left behind with her for the time being…

That's all Ash needed to take action. "Cool! I need to go find him, pronto!" Even though they wouldn't be battling yet while Ash's Pokémon were being refreshed, Ash never wanted to pass up on an opportunity to talk to his less-than-social rival while he waited. Eager to see Paul after the ten-day gap, he immediately set off outside to find him.

"Oh, wait…!" Nurse Joy called out after him. "You don't know where the battlefield is!"

But it was too late; Ash had already left the building.

"What is it about that guy that makes Ash so excited to see him?" Dawn muttered. "He must know by now what Paul's going to say to him, most likely…" Her Piplup was equally confused on the matter. She'd have to wait for Brock to recover before following Ash out, however.

Meanwhile, at the original designated battling area – still a mess as it was earlier – a certain trio in construction worker garb made their presence known as they got to work.

"Tada…!" a triumphant disguised Meowth slid in next to the sign they placed to make the public aware of the battlefield's condition.

"A likely response to a "Help Wanted" ad!" Jessie exclaimed, shovel in hand.

A dump truck came into the scene, driven by James (adding a fake mustache to his disguise). "Now we've jot a job; I'm glad!"

"Dig that dirt!" Jessie proclaimed; indeed, this was their opportunity to subtly cite their team motto and they were certainly going to take it with no one around to see them.

"Dump that truck!" James followed along, shifting the dump truck's drive into reverse.

"Back 'er up, just a tad!" Meowth said next, signaling the dump truck to position itself just right.

Jessie kneeled down to poke at the damaged ground before continuing the "motto", as they thought of it as. "Demolished battlefields can be bad for one's health…"

"But one man's problems can bring another man wealth!" James chimed in.

"Demolition and construction; you leave it to us!" Jessie said with sheer confidence.

James rhymed along in a low, assured tone. "Just show us the money and we'll make all the fuss."

"With Jessie…!"

"And James, too!"

"Meowth, without foi'ther ado!"

The trio made their final epic poses.

"Clean up the mess and build in its place!" Jessie began the final part.

"We're Team Rocket!" James proudly sung out; no twerps and Team Rocket being relatively unknown to Sinnoh made this a much safer thing to say out loud than in past regions.

"In your face!" all three finished in unison, just as the dump truck James was driving (before jumping out to pose with his compatriots) dropped a mound of dirt on the ground just behind them as a finishing touch.

The merry work was cut short, however, as an all-too-familiar voice of a young teen boy was heard loud and clear in the area. "Hello…?"

Sure enough, Ash of Pallet Town himself showed up before the trio, still in search of Paul and more than a little confused at the sight of heavy-duty construction work. Meowth's impulses often overrode his logic; this was one such time.

"A twoi'p mess!" he uttered in horror before Jessie and James quickly clammed his mouth shut before he could completely blow their cover. Thankfully for Team Rocket, their adversary of many years remained to be a slow-witted one.

"Twerp…?" Ash echoed back Meowth's accent-mauling utterance of the word. As always, these three seemed vaguely familiar to him, but he'd never be able to put his finger on it on his own.

Though dull-witted herself at times, Jessie was quick to cover for Meowth in more ways than one. "He meant why you trekked here is anyone's guess!" she hastily explained.

Seeing the mess about, it finally became clear to Ash that this was no place for having a battle. "So the battlefield's not ready yet?"

"Sorry, sonny!" James apologized; his voice altered to sound more like an older man's. "Won't be ready for two or three days."

By this point, Dawn and a recovering Brock managed to rejoin Ash just in time to hear the news.

"Battling day-in and day-out has pummeled this place to a battle pulp," Jessie further explained just in case her twerp foes tried to be difficult about this. "So we're sprucing it up in one go!"

"Better take yer battlin' business elsewhere," Meowth advised, free to speak again.

"Whoa… now what do we do?" Ash wondered out loud. He understood well enough that he couldn't battle Paul here; the fact that Paul was nowhere in sight proved that he had already relocated. But with no indication as to where he might've gone, Ash was now helpless at to what to do next.

Brock and Dawn didn't have any bright ideas of their own, but luckily for them, an answer came from another source.

"Ah, you must be Ash from Pallet Town!"

The gang turned towards the direction of the voice, finding a young adult male looking near Reggie's age with short, forest-green hair and what appeared to be a referee's uniform.

Ash stiffly nodded at the stranger. "That's me, yeah."

"I've been waiting for you," the man explained. "The name is Olivier, and I'm a traveling referee. I got a call from Reggie a few days ago asking me to come to Lake Acuity and officiate the Pokémon battle between you and Paul."

"Great; but the battlefield's closed," Ash pointed out, still downtrodden over this unfortunate circumstance.

Yet Olivier remained undeterred. "Don't worry. Reggie told me he's got a backup plan just in case."

"Huh?" Ash didn't expect this… then again, as the whole battle was Reggie's idea, it made sense that his preparations covered absolutely every possible scenario.

"Since this battlefield's no good, Reggie already chose another spot for you and Paul to battle. It's actually right by the lake not too far from here; about northwest from where we are now. Keep running in that direction and you can't miss them."

With that, Ash brightened up considerably. "Hey, thanks! Can we go there right now?"

"Feel free to," Olivier offered. "I'll be right behind you guys in a minute; I've just got some last-minute preparations of my own to make and then we'll have your battle underway."

"Sounds like the battle's still on," Brock acknowledged. "It's already noon, Ash; we'd better hurry."

Ash nodded, fully on board with any course of action that involved rushing. "Alright, then! We'll meet you over there, Olivier! Thanks for the tip!"

"Ah, your Pokémon, Ash…!" Dawn cried out the reminder just before Ash could speed off and out of sight again.

"… Oh! That's right!" Ash froze in place before laughing at his own impatient nature, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment. "Not gonna be much of a battle if I don't have my Pokémon with me, huh…"

Dawn just smiled and shook his head. "Better not give Paul another reason to diss you."

"They're probably ready to go by now," Brock figured. "So let's pick them up and head out."

"Right; let's get a move on!" Ash agreed as he and his friends dashed back towards the Pokémon Center. This left Olivier to ponder his own matters while the nearby Team Rocket could easily overhear him.

Olivier looked up in at the sky, searching his mind for ideas. "Now where am I going to find someone to operate the scoreboard on such short notice…? I couldn't possibly drag Nurse Joy away from her Pokémon Center when she's got so much on her hands already…"

"I smell another one-time salary opportunity, my fellow men," James quietly muttered to his teammates. Meowth and Jessie nodded, though the former looked doubtful.

"It'd be a lot more glamorous than diggin' up da' dirt, but we ain't gonna be done with dis' job for a while, Jimmy. Battle's probably gonna reach its conclusion by da' time we fix dis' kinda mess," he brought up.

At the thought of a more "glamorous" job, however, Jessie was quickly on board with James' idea. "The dirt's not going anywhere, and one silly battle ought to be only a brief cut into our work time. We'll just tell the nurse we're going on break and then it's onwards to more success."

"Brilliant ploy," James complimented. "And with our endless source of disguises, it should be a cinch to take on a second job."

Jessie smirked, stepping forth, looking to her comrades as she continued to keep her voice down. "Let _me_ get this referee's attention," she requested before raising her tone, directly addressing Olivier. "Excuse me, sir! I believe _we_ can be of some assistance to you."

Olivier turned his attention towards Jessie, looking confused. "You can? But… aren't you all busy as it is?" He pointed towards the ruined battlefield.

"It's not "us" we mean, but some freelance friends of ours!" James explained.

"It'd be our pleasure to fetch 'em for ya," Meowth offered with a smirk. "Who else in da' middle'ah nowhere's gonna be available at dis' hour?"

"You're sure they wouldn't mind?" Olivier asked them, sounding a bit unsure. It just seemed _too_ convenient….

Jessie shook her head. "They're but a hop, skip, and a jump from where we are now; dirt poor as they are!"

"So poor they can't even afford a car," James bemoaned. "We implore you to give them a chance so that they may have the means to have a feast, if only for a night!"

"Oh, I didn't know they were destitute," Olivier apologized, now much easier to convince. "If they're available, by all means call them over."

"Then don't move one inch; we'll bring them to you!" all three shouted together as they zoomed off towards the Pokémon Center to give Nurse Joy their excuse, then make a detour back to their hiding place in the bushes for a quick change of wardrobe.

James smirked as he pulled out the disguise chosen for their short tenure as Olivier's assistants. "I've been saving these old duds for a rainy day," he said with a small hint of eagerness in his voice. "These bring back so many memories…"

Meowth looked up at the bright blue sky while he got into his matching disguise. "D'ere's barely a cloud in da' sky today… ya know that, right?"

"Please," James calmly urged. "Don't spoil the moment."

* * *

"Now, Electabuzz! ThunderPunch!"

Since relocating to a quaint spot right next to Lake Acuity, Paul had been diligently training his Pokémon and – much like Conway did with Lickilicky – ensured that their moves were mastered just in time for the full battle. Reggie watched his little brother closely as he relaxed on a small, cozy hill of grass right behind the action. With approval, he nodded upon seeing Electabuzz land a solid punch to the ground below it. Despite electricity being ineffectual against Ground-type Pokémon, the actual ground was still vulnerable to the unbelievable power and force coming from a concentrated hit. A small but clearly visible crater was made from the imprint of Electabuzz's fist and the raw energy from its lightning-charged punch caused a small fissure, loosening the ground in the vicinity and compromising its sturdiness. It was clear that Electabuzz could use the ThunderPunch move to its full potential in any given situation now.

"It's amazing that you've been able to perfect your Pokémon's moves in just ten days," Reggie commented, and this time he wasn't sugarcoating it just to make Paul feel better. Though the younger brother hadn't won in any of their matches during that ten-day period, Paul's Pokémon did vastly improve in other ways. This demonstration proved it, and without a direct defeat blinding Paul to his Pokémon's progress, he himself could finally see that his team _did_ become significantly more powerful since his embarrassing loss to his father.

Paul couldn't argue it now; he'd been down on himself and his Pokémon for the majority of the ten days of training, but seeing how far his Pokémon had come made him think back on the events back then, and why he worked so hard to get where he was now. Reggie looked mildly concerned as another gentle lake breeze blew against Paul; his hair slightly disheveled by the light wind.

"I remember what you said ten days ago," Paul finally said to his brother, still not looking him in the face.

What Reggie said to him echoed in his mind for each passing day since he said it: _"Hey, Paul! Do you think there's any chance that you and Ash can treat us to a full battle?"_

This was said mere minutes after Paul was soundly defeated by his old man in front of a group of his peers. The overall poor performance was something that Paul still had difficulty in living down; understandably so, as he held so much contempt against the Pyramid King for years upon years. His long-awaited chance to show the Pyramid King what for being squandered due to his own ineptitude and the fact that he couldn't hide it from anyone left a scar on Paul's self-esteem. Every defeat against Reggie after that did nothing to heal that wound… and never before had Paul felt so lowly about himself. Even now, he continued to think of himself as pathetic; just as – if not more so – than all of the unworthy Pokémon he had released over the years.

"So why have a battle _now?_" Paul asked Reggie. It was obvious to the elder brother that Paul was still unsure of himself after all this time. His fear to face _Ash_ of all people was also picked up on by Reggie. That was one major reason why Reggie requested this battle: to get Paul to overcome this fear bred by his horrendous losing streak. The last thing Brandon would accept from either of his children was their fear, so naturally that was the first thing that needed to be rectified before any other flaw of the trainer.

However, Reggie decided not to say that out loud; acknowledging such a thing to Paul would likely make him overly-defensive, and riling up such emotions would only distract him during the battle, just as they had with his father. He settled for the motivational reason instead. "It just seems like your battle with Brandon had a major effect on you," he said gently.

Understatement of the _year_, that was. Paul was very aware of this, too. However, he resisted the urge to interrupt his brother with a sarcastic remark.

"Now seems like the perfect time," Reggie finished. Of course, Paul expected a bit more than that as he found the strength to give his brother a hard stare.

Reggie never liked it when Paul did this; this was not unlike Brandon's stone-cold looks he would give his own sons without hesitance. The Pokémon Breeder held out both hands in his defense; his composure quickly dropping. "W-well, that's the biggest reason, anyway. Look, Paul, there's obviously more to it… but if you thought about it hard enough, you'd probably figure it out completely in a heartbeat. However… this is the wrong time to be asking that question; it's even worse to dwell on it."

Well, Reggie did have a point. Brandon's words of how Paul's emotions betrayed him on the battlefield were also constantly on his mind. It was understandably hard to keep those emotions fully under control (especially when he had so much already repressed and bottled up), but over time Paul accepted this as yet another challenge. This was a challenge that would no doubt set him apart from the average trainer, and even with Paul's doubts about Ash, one thing that could never be doubted was how prone Ash was to emotional reactions. Routinely, Paul used such tactics to defeat him in the past. His lack of doing so in the PokéRinger competition may very well have been a factor in Paul's first technical defeat to the Kanto native.

With any luck, if Paul could control his own emotions, it would be a cinch to use that to his advantage. The strategy Paul slowly built over the course of the ten days (without Reggie's help) centered on this. It was a gamble, but not necessarily a risky one in Paul's opinion.

"Fine," Paul conceded as his cold glare at Reggie faded away, much to the latter's relief. "After the battle, then."

Reggie nodded. "That should be fine. But for now… just remember what Dad said, okay?"

"Couldn't forget even if I tried," Paul assured him, his tone now even and stern. For these last few moments before the battle, now that Paul's Pokémon were set, all that remained was Paul becoming completely and totally in control of himself.

Minutes from now, what he learned in this ten-day period would be put to the test.

* * *

Back at the Pokémon Center, Nurse Joy already had Ash's Pokémon fully recovered by the time he and the others returned to retrieve them. All of them were out of their Pokéballs now; each one eager for the battle ahead of them.

"Your Pokémon are all ready for your battle," Nurse Joy told the equally-eager teen. "Now everybody's in tip-top shape."

To show that, each Pokémon let out their own cry of triumph, much to the amusement of their trainer and his friends.

"Thanks, Nurse Joy," Ash gratefully told the ever-helpful woman no matter where he was in any region.

"You all sure look confident," Dawn noted as she looked at each of Ash's Pokémon. "You're ready to battle for sure!" Her Piplup agreed as well. "And you can count on us to cheer you on big time!" Piplup was also on board with that promise.

"Thanks, Dawn. And I'm gonna win this, too!" Ash assured her. This was the first time in ages that Ash was _this_ confident about defeating Paul. "Just as soon as I defeat Paul and his Pokémon, he'll have no choice but to finally give me a little respect for my training style!"

That was something Ash longed for since the day he met the most serious rival he ever had. Despite the controversy, Ash couldn't deny that Paul had to be doing _something_ right with his training to get as far as Ash himself over the years. Naturally, he expected the same courtesy from Paul since he's witnessed Ash's competence as a trainer over the several months they've known and battled each other. Even _Gary_ wasn't this difficult to come to terms with. But after seeing Paul at his lowest when he watched the battle against Brandon, Ash couldn't help but feel lucky this time. This time things would be different, and Ash was bound to learn much from this battle; both for himself and Paul.

"So let's move it!" Ash declared; he'd been quite impatient since coming to the Pokémon Center. "We'll show Paul what we've got and give him a taste of what we can _really_ do!"

The group of six Pokémon cheered again in unison; each one feeling the same as their trainer, including the eagerness and impatience. More than any other, though, Chimchar felt these emotions so very strongly as he continued to hop and cheer well after the others had stopped. The reason for the abundance of enthusiasm was obvious, of course.

"Wow, Chimchar. You're all fired up, aren't you?" Ash remarked with amusement. He smiled upon hearing the tiny, but fierce "Char!" from his Chimp Pokémon.

"Watching Chimchar reminds me of what Cynthia once told us," Brock said thoughtfully as he watched Chimchar continue to hop, completely anxious for the battle to begin.

Dawn looked to Brock, knowing what he meant. "You mean when she said "When every life meets another life, something will be born"…?"

"Right," Brock affirmed. "But that's not all; she also spoke of a larger-than-life destiny waiting for Chimchar… and that Chimchar is the touchstone for Ash's and Paul's relationship."

But right now, Ash wasn't even listening to his friends. He was still fully focused on getting his Pokémon's morale boosted to its maximum. "Everybody ready?" he asked them one last time.

Their prideful cries filled the small lobby of the Pokémon Center; that was all that Ash needed from them. It was time to move on out and give it their all… just to prove to Paul that they were all worthy adversaries.

* * *

"Here they come!"

Reggie could see their figures in the distance. He was now eager to finally get this battle underway. "Time's up, Paul!"

The bitter younger brother rolled his eyes before pulling out a Pokéball. "Electabuzz, return," he calmly said as the red beam of light sent the Electric Pokémon back to its resting place. Paul then turned to see for himself the trio that he loathed for so long coming into full view as they dashed over to meet the two siblings.

As always, there was never a pleasant greeting from Paul. A chilling silence (besides the outdoor ambience) was the only "greeting" Paul liked to give these people. He and Ash stared at each other for the moments of remaining silence… this time, Ash wasn't letting Paul's cold-hearted nature affect his bright and cheery demeanor.

Luckily, Reggie was there to break the ice this time. "Thanks for coming, Ash. Welcome!" he greeted, standing up to walk towards the group. "I really believe the two of you were destined to battle each other this way."

"The two of us…?" Ash asked him. Still a kid who mainly focused on the simple things in life, thinking little of the greater meanings behind the trials of his journeys, it was a certainty that Reggie would have to explain his beliefs thoroughly so that they wouldn't go right over Ash's head.

"You see, you and Paul are completely different, and yet you're a lot alike, too," Reggie stated; this much wasn't lost on Ash. The young teen from Pallet Town himself stated this to Paul a while back when they crossed paths shortly after the Wallace Cup. "Both of you wish to become strong with your Pokémon, yet your training methods are at opposites. So as long as you're both this tuned into each other and also have the desire to become stronger, I think a full battle between you is unavoidable."

So far Reggie wasn't being difficult to comprehend, even for Ash. "As rivals, you need to know each others' current strength. You need to know how powerful each other has become, and that will lead to your own evolution as a trainer."

The last part, however, Ash took a little bit too literally. "Wait, _me?_ Evolve?"

"You too, Paul," Reggie assured his little brother, who looked around without paying much mind to what Reggie said. Now that Ash was here, his eye would always be on the ball.

"So, where do we battle?" Paul asked him; his casual tone indicated that he didn't take much of what Reggie said to heart.

"Right here," Reggie answered.

Ash looked around the area. "Right here? Really?"

"Well, we can't use the field at the Pokémon Center," Reggie pointed out. "So I thought it might be nice to give it your all in the great outdoors!"

Never mind that they would've been outside anyway even if their original battlefield was usable, but that location didn't possess the kind of background scenery the new locale had, close to Lake Acuity as they were now.

"Sure!" Ash agreed, eager to get started. However, he was considerate of what Paul wanted, too, seeing as he never looked happy about anything. "How's it sound, Paul?"

Paul closed his eyes, trying not to be frustrated with Ash and his constant attempts to be casual and friendly with his adversary. "It doesn't matter to me."

Glad that Paul wasn't going to be difficult about the minor details, Reggie looked ready to get things started. "That settles it," he decided.

"Good! We're all decided!" a familiar voice shouted from high above the others. The group looked up to see Olivier in a hot-air balloon already on its descent to the ground.

Reggie was glad to see the referee he had called for days ago was punctual and prepared. "Ready to referee?" he asked, just to be sure.

Olivier hopped out of the balloon once it landed. "I sure am!" he said, looking back at the large air balloon basket behind him. "And now, for my help!"

On cue, a trio wearing all-black stagehand outfits normally used in kabuki performances (which were traditional forms of entertainment in the oriental region of Johto) emerged from the balloon. Yes, Team Rocket even fooled Olivier with their change of clothes despite having the exact same voices as the trio of construction workers he spoke with before. Not that this was anything new… but it had been a long time since these particular disguises were last used; three years ago, way back when Ash was in the middle of his first journey in Kanto.

"Yes sir!" all three called out in unison, ready to make even more money than they expected.

Meowth pressed a button on a control panel within the balloon. "Helpin'!" he chimed in as the hot-air balloon suddenly transformed itself into a digital scoreboard, similar in appearance to those used in official League Conferences. The group came closer to the contraption, watching in awe.

"Wow, awesome!" Dawn said with awe. "What's that?" Her Piplup of course was also curious.

"It's a portable reference monitor," Olivier explained to her before looking back to Team Rocket. "Okay, team! All set?"

"Right! Couldn't be any more setter!" they announced.

They flipped the power switch, and instantly the scoreboard was live. Portraits of both Ash and Paul were visible with six round Pokéball dots halfway covering each portrait – each circle represented the six Pokémon for both teams, though the actual Pokémon portraits would not be shown until they were sent out onto the field. All that would be needed was a stadium full of ecstatic people for this to look exactly like a Sinnoh League battle.

With that, everyone took their positions. A convenient bench sat nearby the balloon where operations were held, which was where Brock, Dawn (with her Piplup), and Reggie took their seats. Jessie, James, and Meowth remained behind the balloon to keep track of the battle statistics, of course. Olivier took center position at the side of the battlefield as all referees did while Ash and Paul took their places on the opposite ends of the field, several yards apart from each other.

It was finally time for the battle to get underway.

Olivier shouted out the obligatory announcement. "Representing Kanto is Ash from Pallet Town; representing Sinnoh is Paul from Veilstone City! We now begin a six-on-six full battle! There is no time limit and both sides may exchange Pokémon freely as desired. The battle will be over when all six Pokémon on either side are unable to continue. We will now use Coin Toss to see who will mount the first attack!" He looked to each trainer; Dawn was ready with the Coin Toss application on her Pokétch. "Alright then, trainers! Heads or tails; what will it be?"

"I call heads!" Ash immediately shouted back.

"Then tails!" the apathetic Paul conceded; they always seemed to take the same side of the coin every time they battled.

The two rivals had another unnerving stare-off as Dawn flipped the digital Magikarp coin on her Pokétch application. The mere seconds it took for the coin to land on a side seemed to drag on forever; Ash and Paul both were anxious in their own way to start the battle. Ash's eagerness was always more obvious in plain sight, and it was that demeanor – wearing his heart on his sleeve – that would put Ash at a disadvantage here. Paul spent ten whole days disciplining himself emotionally; what Brandon suggested he focused on improving turned out to be very useful advice not only for Paul's defense. Seeing that Ash still remained unrestrained with his emotions in addition to Paul figuring that Ash was likely a bit more cocky than usual after seeing his rival at his lowest during the battle against Brandon, Paul was now able to see a giant weak spot on Ash himself. And like the Pyramid King, Paul planned to ensure his victory by ruthlessly taking advantage of Ash's weakness.

All Paul needed was to believe in his own abilities now; with his self-esteem this low, he couldn't afford to let his emotions betray him again. The potential disaster would be something Paul might not be able to recover from.

Ash of course was not thinking this deeply, but he was definitely more self-assured after seeing that it was possible to break that cool, stoic demeanor of his rival. Disturbing and heart-wrenching as that was to watch, Ash figured to a lesser extent he too could finally achieve victory if he could get Paul to lose his cool in the middle of the battle. This time, Ash was giving it his all to the highest degree possible.

Finally, the digital coin landed.

"Heads!" Olivier confirmed. "So Ash has the honor."

Everything was set; all that remained was for Ash to make the first move. He looked to Pikachu, hardly able to prolong the wait any more. "Okay, Pikachu! Let's do this!" he said, raw determination flaring up within him.

Following a concurring, energetic "Pika!" from his partner, Ash drew out his first Pokéball, pressing the button once to enlarge the sphere to its actual size. Paul was dead silent as he awaited the revealing of his first opponent while it was equally quiet with the group sitting on the bench. Dawn held her hands together in her lap with anticipation; her nerves rattled with the excitement about to unfold. She also didn't forget how frighteningly out of control Paul was when she last saw him battle… the up-and-coming Coordinator prayed that Paul heeded the advice given by the Frontier Brain who resembled him; she didn't like the idea of Ash having to face that enraged, desperate Paul she saw ten days ago one bit.

At last, the Pokéball was thrown in tandem with Ash's battle cry. "Alright! Buizel, I choose you…!"

"Torterra, stand by for battle!" Paul followed immediately after as both trainers unleashed their chosen Pokémon onto the field.

The Sea Weasel Pokémon's "Buibui!" battle cry sounded pitiful to the thunderous, low-pitched roar of Torterra. Already, this scenario didn't look favorable to Ash.

"Torterra, huh…" Ash muttered, clearly apprehensive about his chances with this type of match-up. Even if Paul's performance had been less than stellar lately, Ash still intended on taking this battle seriously. Though Buizel could likely out-speed the Continent Pokémon in any situation, this was still Paul's strongest overall.

"Hm." Paul gave Ash a look; he expected some reckless command from his rival by now, but it was clear that Ash was uncertain about how to handle this right away. This, however, was Paul's intention for showing off his strongest Pokémon first; to shake Ash up and inflict the self-doubt that Paul himself had been suffering with for weeks. It was impossible to tell with Paul's consistently stoic expression, but he was glad to give Ash a little taste of the torment he'd been through.

In the background, the Team Rocket trio sang out "A button here, button there!" as they punched in the data required to update the digital scoreboard – appropriately, pictures of Buizel and Torterra appeared in place of the top Pokéball of both columns of six in their respective trainer's corner.

"Alright, let the battle begin!" Olivier announced, and all eyes went on Ash as he was expected to make the first move… and here he was uncertain already.

Ultimately, Ash decided he would show Paul just how much he had matured as a trainer by thinking through his problem and choosing the _logical_ route for once. He held out Buizel's Pokéball once more. "Buizel, return now!" he shouted; the red beam of light emitted from the Pokéball, hitting Buizel and successfully recalled it back into its Pokéball. As he did so, Ash returned Paul the hard stare he'd been receiving this whole time.

Paul found this vaguely intriguing; he even felt a little déjà vu, as this was precisely his first action when his battle with Brandon began. He suspected Ash's reason for doing this was the same as his own.

Dawn was shocked; the similarity between this and the beginning of the battle she witnessed over a week ago was lost on her. The disguised trio at work, having not seen that battle at all, was reasonably surprised to see Ash's first move be a switch-out.

"Having second thoughts is usually not the twerp way," Jessie noted, unable to make a guess at why this was done.

"How does he change his mind when he has none?" James wondered out loud; he merely assumed Ash to be too incompetent to approach a battle any other way than head-on.

"I was lookin' forward ta' watchin' Buizel kickin' someone else's booty fer a change," Meowth grumbled with disappointment. Wobbuffet (also mysteriously in a matching disguise) appeared out of its Pokéball to give its usual unwarranted "Wooooh-buh!" input afterward.

Back on the battlefield, Ash looked down apologetically at Buizel's Pokéball. "Buizel, I really wanted to battle with you," he honestly expressed. "But the thing is, Water-type moves don't really work well against Torterra…" Paul overheard this, increasingly self-assured that he correctly guessed why Ash recalled Buizel immediately. Though lacking a true resistance to Water-type moves thanks to its dual Ground-typing, Torterra's defenses were so sturdy that most neutral moves remained to be about as effective as the type of moves it resisted. That was precisely why Paul recalled his Magmar when his battle versus Brandon began; Regirock was a very sturdy tank of a Pokémon and resisted Fire-types, hence why Paul decided not to waste his time. It was actually a bit refreshing to see Ash playing the game the way a "normal" trainer would for once.

"… So hang tight till the next time," Ash assured Buizel's Pokéball as he pocketed it, pulling out a second – this one containing a more suitable opponent for Torterra. He threw it, calling upon another dear friend. "You're up instead! Gliscor, I choose you!"

The enthusiastic Fang Scorp Pokémon cried out upon its release, very eager to make Ash proud. Paul took note of the fact that Ash possessed the exact same species of Pokémon as he did. Even with a bit of a disadvantage in type now, Paul knew his way around a Gliscor simply by all the time he invested training his own. And like his father, Paul was not about to back out and recall Torterra simply because the tables turned on him in regards to type. He wanted to make it so that type would be as meaningless to this battle as it was in his battle against the Pyramid King.

Meanwhile, Team Rocket got to work to update the monitor; the picture of Buizel was grayed out to show that it was still usable, but presently inactive. The full-color picture of Gliscor appeared right below Buizel's portrait.

"Paul, remember Gliscor?" Ash asked his rival, giving him a wry smile as he sounded awfully confident about his chances here. "You met it back when it was still a Gligar."

Indeed, Paul did remember that weak crybaby Gligar that his Gliscor defeated with ease. Back then, Paul already figured the little Gligar was part of the pack his Gliscor once led before its capture and used that to his advantage, which worked beautifully for him. Seeing the rarely-successful Guillotine move take down a weak Pokémon so soundly satisfied Paul ever so much. The fact that Ash managed to get that Gligar to evolve was no surprise to Paul by now; he expected it.

This would be the moment that Paul would return Ash's question with a rude remark. But today, Paul was rigid; testing himself as much as he was testing his opponent. Controlling his emotions was a key concern here, so even though it was very tempting, Paul held himself back from saying a single word to Ash about the matter. His expressions did not change at all… this was something Paul wanted to maintain for the entire battle and prove to Brandon that he could pass this test… even if he wasn't present to see him do so.

"Wow, the taller twerp seems to be tongue-tied," James noted, as he and the others had seen Paul and witnessed his past heartless actions enough to expect a response as much as Ash did.

"Better gagged than grouchy," Jessie said, preferring Paul's silence to his past behavior.

"Wooooh-buh…!"

Though Paul's lack of reply was off-putting, Ash figured he was simply waiting for the first move – the battle still hadn't actually started. Done with the small talk, Ash finally took action. "Gliscor, now! Sand Attack!"

Paul couldn't believe Ash still had his Gliscor using that move; it was the same opening Ash had this Pokémon use during their last battle when it was a Gligar. It didn't help then; why would Ash think it would make a difference now? This just went to show how opposite Paul and Ash were when it came to training and battling style.

Still, Paul expected Ash to have learned from his miserable past failure. Since he obviously hadn't, Paul intended to do much more than punish him – he'd tear a page out of Brandon's book and completely mess with Ash's head, to a much higher degree than ever before.

"Terra!" Paul's Torterra readily grumbled, seemingly able to sense what Paul had in mind. The two were equally stoic, steady, and calm as Gliscor beat its giant pincers into the ground, kicking up massive dust clouds to obscure the vision of both the opposing Pokémon and trainer. Reggie winced as he tried to get a good look of his brother's stance, though it was hard to see. What he had said in the past turned out to be very astute, however: Paul and Torterra were perfect matches for each other and Reggie knew Paul's starter would be the most difficult Pokémon for Ash to take down.

"Using Sand Attack was a wise move," Reggie mused, a bit more appreciative of the technique than Paul was.

"Ash has battled against Torterra several times in the past and watched it in battle as well," Brock told him. "He really knows Torterra's moves, so he's blocking its vision."

Aside from Electabuzz, Torterra was the Pokémon of Paul's that Ash was most familiar with. The fact that it was Paul's starter made Ash all the more interested in finding ways to defeat it, despite the obvious advantages it had against Ash's starter. But Ash was also very appreciative of Torterra after it went out of its way to help his Grotle. It was a bit bothersome for Paul, actually, that Ash cared this much about what Torterra did.

After many moments of concentration, Paul called out the first move that came to mind when he finally decided to strike back. "Giga Drain!"

Torterra hollered as he rose up; the rocks protruding from its shell glowed in a bright green color. Beams of the same hue emitted from these rocks as they rose up to make an arc before rushing downward back into the low-visibility range to capture Gliscor. However, Gliscor jumped and flied up into the sky over the dust clouds to evade the attack, leaving the beams with nothing to hit but the solid ground. The plucky Gliscor taunted its earthbound opponent, as dodging Giga Drain didn't even make it break a sweat.

Torterra glared up at Gliscor, a low and annoyed "Terra…" heard by Paul.

"It worked; Torterra missed," Dawn pointed out.

While Dawn was glad for that, Brock was a bit grimmer about how this turn played out. "I have a sneaking suspicion Paul used that attack _knowing_ it was going to miss," he muttered. Dawn and Piplup stared at Brock, completely oblivious as to why Brock would believe such a thing, but Reggie seemed to be on the exact same page.

"I think you're right," Reggie said. "Purposefully while still in that Sand Attack…"

Dawn still didn't understand the motive. "But why…?"

"To try and get Ash to let down his guard a bit," Reggie answered for her. "When an opponent's attack misses, a trainer can get too comfortable mentally." This was a topic he and Paul had gone over a few times during their ten-day training period, but it was also something Paul and Reggie both learned from personal experiences over the years.

Ash, of course, was just as oblivious as Dawn as to where this was going. "Now, Gliscor! Use X-Scissor!"

Gliscor crossed its pincers together, forming an X-shaped charge of energy as it proceeded to dive-bomb its very large opponent. The hit was direct and super-effective; the highest pressure point of the attack being right on Torterra's forehead. The force of the blow was strong enough to even send the Continent Pokémon skidding back a few feet despite weighing nearly seven-hundred pounds. This was where Reggie's training paid off inadvertently; normally Paul would have been at least a _little_ shocked to see any attack coming from something Gliscor's size or smaller to have the power capable of pushing something as large and heavy as Torterra back a notable distance. But from the very first day of training when Reggie's Infernape – even smaller in size than Gliscor – knocked Torterra back nearly a mile with Blast Burn, this was nothing by comparison. Paul maintained his calm, cool demeanor even when green sparks of the failed Giga Drain came out from Torterra's shell-embedded stones.

Gliscor backflipped its way to its original position on Ash's side of the field, quite proud of the damage it dealt to Torterra in just one blow. A surprised "Pika?" was uttered by Ash's little yellow companion, mirroring Ash's own surprise of the first clash.

"Check that out; Torterra took it!" he exclaimed. Very few of Ash's Pokémon were ever this sturdy, of course. But this did hearken back to the night when Ash's Grotle received a personal lesson from this particular Torterra. The elder Pokémon taught its fellow species the important trade-off that occurred when Grotle lost its speed – a considerably increased endurance that should never be ignored. Much as Ash appreciated what Torterra did for Grotle, the trainer himself still didn't have a full understanding or appreciation of how far a top-notch defense can go. Paul, on the other hand, always knew better with his starter and always made defense the emphasis on its training. Years of defensive focus made Torterra able to take a direct super-effective hit and still stand with relative ease.

While Ash's mind often wandered as he battled his rival, Paul remained completely focused as he called for the next attack. "Frenzy Plant!"

Torterra's entire body emitted a strong glow before it summoned numerous thorn-covered roots from the earth below. They rose up, only to arc downwards like the last attack and collectively struck at Gliscor.

"Awesome," Dawn marveled at the attack, as did her intimidated Piplup.

"Frenzy Plant is the most dynamic Grass-type move with all that sheer power on tap," Brock commented. It was obvious to him that Paul put a lot of work into mastering this attack.

"Yeah, but it's a risky move, too," Reggie informed them, sounding concerned that the risk would not pay off this time.

Ash was well aware of Frenzy Plant's capabilities. He wasn't about to let his Pokémon take the brunt of that hit. "Now…! Up, Gliscor!"

Once more, Gliscor jumped into the air and soared high up to miss the initial blow of Frenzy Plant and also raised its altitude so that it would remain well out of the attack's range. Torterra flinched as the roots receded back into the ground.

Dawn took immediate notice of this, looking concerned. "Torterra's in trouble," she acknowledged.

"That's the risk of Frenzy Plant," Reggie said with a nod. "After the attack, Torterra won't be able to move for a while."

It didn't strike Ash at all how odd it was that Paul would act so carelessly; all that mattered to him right now was that Paul left a _wide_ opportunity for him to counterattack with no possible repercussions due to Torterra's immobility. "Now's our chance!" he realized, smirking up at Gliscor. "Use Fire Fang!"

The Scorp Fang Pokémon readied itself for another quick descent as flames poured out from its mouth. After a steady swoop downwards, Gliscor collided with its target and bit the bulky quadruped with its fiery fangs. Black plumes of smoke emitted as an explosion was heard, caused from the damage Gliscor had given Torterra. One direct super-effective hit following another in quick succession was enough to make Torterra moan out in pain.

Brock was alert to the sound. "It felt that!" he exclaimed as Gliscor emerged from the dark smoke, gracefully soaring back into the air to distance itself just in case Torterra might recover earlier than expected and counterattack. But… it didn't. Ash saw no reason not to go in and land another blow; one thing he did know very well about Pokémon with high defensive capabilities was that it seemed to take forever to get them incapacitated. Even if Torterra might be able to move by this point, the sounds it made and the critical hits it sustained encouraged Ash to rush into the next attack head-on once again.

"Use X-Scissor!" he called out, which Gliscor heeded. The way Gliscor attacked was exactly the same as previous times, and Paul took note of this mentally. He found it pitiful that Ash honestly seemed oblivious to the fact that his Gliscor was highly predictable in its move execution. As usual, after the direct hit from the super-effective Bug-type move, Gliscor immediately flew away from the vicinity and back into the air. Small, shimmering green sparks crackled all over Torterra's immense body, showing everyone just how badly weakened the Continent Pokémon had become.

"Yeah, that worked too!" Ash celebrated, so proud that Gliscor was making a much better impression against Paul now. "Gliscor, let's do one more attack," he told his high-flying friend, seeing that it wouldn't take much more than that to completely take down the strongest Pokémon Paul had to offer. It really _did_ seem to be his lucky day. "Steel Wing; let's go!"

Gliscor charged in yet another time, now with its wings glowing in preparation to deal the final blow. Torterra looked terribly weak and vulnerable, but Paul paid close attention to each and every detail of this battle. He listened, and he waited.

A weak, barely-audible grunt from Torterra made Paul's eyes snap wide open; this was the signal he needed. The perfect time to strike back was now.

"Torterra, Crunch!" Paul quickly commanded, throwing Ash off guard. Just as Gliscor collided into Torterra's sturdy backside with its Steel Wing attack, Torterra bit down _hard_ on the Scorp Fang Pokémon's long, vulnerable tail that hung right in front of Torterra's face. While Gliscor got the hit in, it obviously wasn't enough to take Torterra down and its cries of pain alerted Ash to an unpleasant turn of events.

"Gliscor, no…!" he cried out, never before imagining that Gliscor's tail could be targeted like this. It quickly became obvious to Ash that Gliscor was unable to escape the grasp of Torterra's jaws as he watched it struggle in vain.

Dawn was also shocked by how quickly Paul turned the match around. "Gliscor got caught!"

Paul allowed himself to smirk at the twist he just pulled off. It was a very eerie expression, however… not that it was ever pleasant to see Paul smile in the past, but this time coupled with the fact that he'd been dead silent since the match began (aside from calling out moves), only offering this gesture to show the others that he was still _human_ at least was one that sent a deep chill down the spines of Ash and friends.

It was easy to see why Paul was smirking, however. He had let Torterra take all of this abuse only so Ash would become overconfident and start slacking off on his strategy. His overly-cheerful rival was every bit as arrogant as expected, which made this moment all the more satisfying; seeing the horrified look on Ash's face made Paul eager to horrify him even more.

"Now, Giga Drain," Paul calmly ordered his Torterra, which it happily obliged to. This time, the green beams of light emitting from the rocks on Torterra's shell reached their target with no trouble at all; Giga Drain wrapped itself completely around Gliscor and began to sap the unfortunate captive of its power, which would serve to heal the injuries Torterra sustained and rejuvenate its power. Hearing the cliché "Oh no!" from Ash was music to Paul's ears.

"Gliscor, your power's being drained!" Dawn needlessly shouted out what was painfully obvious to everyone in attendance. "You've gotta get away; quick!"

Even with Piplup aiding Dawn in moral support, Gliscor's efforts to break free were all in vain. Ash's overly-cheery, carefree attitude cost him dearly, and now he was unable to concentrate on anything other than getting Gliscor out of the trap. "Come on, Gliscor!" he urged. "Stay strong!" Pikachu rooted for its comrade; that was all it really _could_ do.

"So _this_ is what Paul was after," Brock quietly realized. "If Torterra became immobilized from the Frenzy Plant, he knew Ash would unleash a barrage of close-ranged attacks…"

Reggie looked to Brock, fully serious right now. "Right. Paul is well aware that Ash knows Torterra's battling style, so he formulated his strategy around that. For all the times they've battled before, Paul figured Ash likely wouldn't stray from his own general battling style… which he believes centers on offensive, fast-paced, close-ranged attacks."

"Paul would be right about that," Brock affirmed. "For all the years I've seen Ash battle, that style hasn't changed very much at all."

Dawn listened in on Reggie and Brock's conversations, which helped her understand what was going on out there a bit better… though it didn't help at all to ease her nerves. "Oh man…"

Hopeless as it appeared, Ash wasn't going to give up to Paul without trying. "Hang in there, Gliscor! Use Fire Fang!"

Gliscor had been rendered almost completely immobile, but there was nothing impairing the movement of its head. It was still able to utilize Fire Fang, and by doing so, it only took one bite into the beams of energy to disrupt the energy transfer, shorting out Giga Drain completely. The burn was still felt by Torterra; enough so that its powerful jaw opened up, freeing Gliscor's tail and allowing it to escape back over to Ash's side of the field.

"Way to go!" Dawn cheered; her expressions brightening at seeing Ash able to overcome the odds. However, this was hardly a cause to go overboard on a celebration, as it quickly became obvious once Gliscor landed on the ground that the damage had been done. Gliscor was gasping for breath and looked just as weak as Torterra had moments ago. "Ah! Torterra's Crunch did lots of damage," she acknowledged.

Ash wasn't about to send Gliscor back into danger again; not in the condition it was in. "Okay, Gliscor; return!" he decided, recalling his weary friend back into its Pokéball.

"I know this battle's just getting started, but I can hardly breathe just from watching…" Dawn muttered, looking down at her equally-shaken Piplup.

"It's only going to get harder to watch from here on out," Brock told her.

Knowing that as well, Dawn took a deep breath, trying to steel herself against the intense battle she was watching. "Right; I get it," she assured the aspiring breeder. "No need to worry… we can tough it out; me and Piplup both."

"Take a good rest," Ash told his Gliscor before switching out the Pokéball with another. Before throwing it, he gazed at the battlefield, hearing the much louder and deeper panting of Torterra, who was also worn down from the match despite being able to regain some of its health back. Ash had never seen Torterra pushed this hard, and yet its trainer paid no mind to this at all. It bothered Ash to see this… though honestly, by now it wasn't surprising.

Still, Ash wondered _why_ Paul refused to switch when odds were low that Torterra would be able to put up a fight against whatever opponent it would have to face next. Why would Paul carelessly leave his first Pokémon to fall like this?

Whatever the case may be, Ash was already tired of questioning it. He just wanted to teach Paul a lesson for months of humiliation. "Now, it's time to finish this thing up!" he said out loud, hoping saying such a thing about Torterra would get some sort of reaction against Paul, but even that had no effect on his stoic rival. "Staraptor, I choose you!"

As Staraptor was sent out, Gliscor's image on the scoreboard was grayed out while an image of Staraptor appeared below it.

Reggie was caught off-guard by seeing a Pokémon the same species of the first one he captured with his starter eight years ago. He smiled, as this Pokémon was definitely familiar to him. "Staraptor must've evolved from the Staravia I battled once, right?" he asked just to be sure.

"Right," Dawn confirmed. "It even beat Paul's Honchkrow in a PokéRinger match."

That was a genuine surprise to Reggie. "Wow, Paul's Honchkrow?" he said, almost in disbelief. "That's pretty amazing. I wonder why Paul didn't tell me about this… I would've liked to watch that. I'm pretty sure those events are televised…"

"Maybe Paul didn't want you seeing him losing to Ash," Dawn mused, particularly catty as she said that. But she quickly regretted it, realizing who she was mocking Paul _to_. "Er, I mean…"

Reggie was pretty good about not taking offense to anything negative said about his brother. Protective as he was, Reggie was fully aware of just how off-putting Paul could be, and just how expertly he could bring out the worst in people. "I-it's alright; I know how easily he can get under anyone's skin."

Meanwhile, back on the battlefield, Ash smirked as he just _knew_ the sight of Staraptor would get _some_ kind of reaction out of Paul – given the recent history that transpired right about the early part of Paul's losing streak that was much longer than anyone was truly aware of. But Paul still retained a perfectly calm and neutral presence… and it was beginning to frustrate Ash that he couldn't do what Brandon did with ease. Ash figured he'd just have to knock Torterra out to get that barrier to break. "Alright, Brave Bird!" he shouted, going straight for his Staraptor's most powerful attack to bring an end to this.

The Predator Pokémon charged its energy while making a beeline for Torterra. Once again, Paul waited and listened before taking action. Timing was an important element to Paul's approach to this battle – it was the best way to get an emotional reaction out of Ash and further throw him off his line of concentration. Torterra looked back to its trainer; Paul understood that was the signal to counter now. "Use Stone Edge!"

"Ah!" Ash completely forgot Torterra could learn Rock-type moves that were especially dangerous for his Staraptor. "Stone Edge, why…?"

Rocks from around the area began to levitate and orbit around Torterra in several different rings, as if Torterra was a massive planet itself. They all fired at once directly at Staraptor, who was too close and locked into its attack pattern to break out in order to dodge. Staraptor suffered a critical hit; the power behind the blow was enough to send Staraptor crashing into the ground.

"Staraptor, no…!" Ash panicked; he worried that one attack was enough to severely injure it. Both Paul and Torterra looked on sternly at their opponent on the battlefield as the dust cleared. Staraptor was still able to battle, but just barely, evident as it struggled to stand on its feet… much less fly.

"Wow, that was super-effective," Brock noted. "_That's_ the reason Paul didn't switch Pokémon." Ash wasn't the only one curious about that, apparently.

Paul finally recalled Torterra after that, prompting Ash to glare. It seemed Paul was always one step ahead of him in these battles, and this one was no different. Whatever power Brandon had over Paul that made him lose his touch, it was obvious that Ash didn't have it.

While Ash couldn't hazard a guess as to what Paul was up to, Reggie read into it effortlessly… hardly a surprise considering the amount of time he'd trained with his brother. "There's no doubt in my mind that Paul was expecting Ash to bring out Staraptor next," he said. "That's why he used Stone Edge to stop Staraptor's Brave Bird and all of Ash's continued assaults as well."

Curiously, he looked to Brock and Dawn. "Do either of you know if Ash came up with a battling strategy for today? Like maybe switching which Pokémon he was going to be using against Paul?" The fact that Reggie was familiar with all these Pokémon (or their pre-evolved states in most cases so far) from when Ash and the others first met him in Veilstone City wasn't a good sign; Paul was even more familiar with Ash's team without a doubt, which made it no wonder how Paul was able to easily assume which Pokémon Ash would send out depending on his situation.

"No, I think Ash was planning on using those six Pokémon right from the beginning," Dawn answered; she was pretty sure that was Ash's intention. She recalled hearing him say at some point during their journey (she forgot when exactly) he was determined to show Paul how strong he was, and he'd do so using only the Pokémon he'd caught from Sinnoh besides Pikachu… to show Paul he wouldn't have to resort to using his more powerful reserves caught from other regions. He wanted to do this to assure each of his native Sinnoh Pokémon that they were every bit as worthy as every other Pokémon Ash had caught in the past regardless of how much weaker they were presently.

"You see, except for Pikachu, Ash got all of his Pokémon after coming here to Sinnoh," Brock further explained, making Reggie's grim expression harden.

"I knew it…" he muttered. "Paul picked _his_ Pokémon line-up based on all the previous battles he's had against Ash." This was a lie, since Brandon was the one who decided on what Pokémon Paul would use in this battle, but naturally Reggie wasn't going to let anyone catch on to their connection to the Pyramid King, as that would go against Paul's wishes. Brock already had a strong suspicion that there was more to their relationship than Reggie let on; that hadn't changed in the ten-day period, either. Still, even if Brandon hadn't been involved in deciding what Paul would have on his team, Reggie knew Paul would've organized a similar team – if not the exact same six he had now – because he was aware that Paul had been rotating his Sinnoh captures and reserves since the beginning of his journey here. Ash was part of the reason why Paul was insistent on doing this a bit more frequently than usual.

Even if Reggie was happy for Paul doing so well, he did still feel for Ash and his obvious frustration right now. "That's why he can predict with such accuracy what Pokémon is coming next."

"Weavile, stand by for battle…!" Paul called out, unleashing a member of his team that he had a rather polarizing relationship with. Ash had seen Paul's Weavile before a few times, but never battled it. He was of course always interested to battle it, though he wouldn't have expected Paul to have one. The two trainers weren't opposites only in personalities and training methods – their taste in Pokémon, despite sharing some of the same species, were also at opposite ends of the spectrum. As it was just seen, Paul was at his best with sturdy Pokémon like Torterra. Though slow and often weren't the ones to land the first hit, they were able to take a lot of punishment before going down. This gave Paul plenty of time for a strong counterattack; the reason why he favored Pokémon that still possessed great offensive power. Defense was just as important as offense in Paul's mind, so the fact that he owned a Weavile was odd, given that their defenses were extremely weak despite their strong offensive power.

Paul admittedly caught this Pokémon as a Sneasel and didn't really know the species well until after he caught it. He'd been tempted many times to release it, especially since it didn't fare quite as well as the others under his training (though never as abysmal as Chimchar). But he had caught a very good Sneasel; its speed was amazing, especially compared to the slow-moving Pokémon Paul possessed, and it was a very hard hitter. Reggie assured his brother that variety on his team was important and urged him strongly to keep it. After evolving it with Brandon's help, Paul was even less inclined to let it go. But after it had lost so easily against Cynthia's Garchomp (which it had a massive type advantage over), Paul had a hard time forgiving its loss. The fact that Weavile alone couldn't get him the Gliscor he wanted months ago (since Electabuzz was also needed to aid in its capture) was another reason for Paul to look down on his poor, bumbling Pokémon.

After failing in catching the boat Paul was late for, which caused him to have that unpleasant reuniting with Conway, that was nearly the last straw. Initially, Paul really did want to release Weavile then and there, but Conway's presence (and nagging) caused Paul to put it off. Instead, he'd just threaten Weavile with an immediate release if it failed at any point during his battle with Byron… but of course, instead of that, Weavile was the reason why Paul won the match. Over time Paul had been increasingly reluctant to go through with the release, which was why he decided to at least be fair and save Weavile for last since there was no way it would win if it were to battle right from the beginning with Paul having no intention to switch out at all. After going against the odds to win Paul the Mine Badge, a short time later Weavile played a major role in saving Paul's life.

That almost completely erased Paul's disdain for his Pokémon, despite stubbornly pretending he didn't care for it. Now Paul was giving Weavile a chance to put Ash in his place. Truly, Weavile was a Pokémon more along the lines of what Ash would prefer; hard-hitting and _fast_. Even if they weren't inherently strong, Ash managed to work with his Pokémon and make them all strong in their own unique ways. It was a bit risky to make Ash face a Pokémon that he would be more accustomed to training, but Paul figured it was worth at least trying. Thanks to Torterra, Ash had already revealed a good chunk of his team early on in the battle. With Paul assured that he knew what Ash's other two Pokémon were, he allowed himself to experiment a little. Even if Weavile lost, Ash would still be playing into Paul's trap.

"Second helping, coming right up!" the working trio sang as they got to work. As the scoreboard was updated to gray out Torterra's picture and reveal Weavile in the active slot, Paul was slightly surprised to see Ash not making a move to recall Staraptor.

The Predator Pokémon was still struggling to get up after that critical hit from Torterra's Stone Edge. "Staraptor, can you still battle?" Ash called out to it. Staraptor nodded to Ash before finally managing its way back up into the sky. So Ash was sticking with Staraptor after all.

Paul wasn't sure at first why Ash would let Staraptor stay in since Flying-types were weak to Ice-types, but as he mentally went back and recalled his last battle with Staraptor, Paul remembered that was when the evolution was triggered. Staravia became Staraptor during the PokéRinger match, and its renewed strength managed to out-muscle Honchkrow into winning the tournament. Staraptor learned a new move upon evolving that day… a move that dealt a good bit of damage to Honchkrow: Close Combat.

That was a Fighting-type move; the one type Weavile had a double-weakness to. With its pitiful defensive power, Weavile wouldn't last long if it took a blow like that. Now Paul understood why Staraptor was being kept in; he also understood that he would likely lose this match if he didn't switch out, but Paul didn't want to give Ash any clue that deep down, his rival was still nervous. Even while doing just as Brandon said and keeping his emotions in check, that couldn't change what Paul was feeling deep down. In any case, he remained firm and just decided to do his best. There were still ways for Paul to break down Ash's confidence with Weavile.

"Alright, then Quick Attack!" Ash commanded. It was a priority move… Paul could have overrode it, but he decided not to make his advantage obvious right away. By using Staraptor, Paul figured Ash would try to overcome him with speed, but he would be in for a nasty surprise soon enough.

Weavile briefly looked back at Paul, who had nothing to say to it. The stone-cold gaze Paul was giving the Sharp Claw Pokémon seemed to be telling enough what Paul expected it to do. Crossing its claws together, Weavile managed to buffer the attack as Staraptor collided with its target. The force of the attack was enough for Staraptor to push Weavile back a good distance; even after Staraptor flew back and away from Weavile, it still skidded back a few extra feet before finally stopping. Weavile managed to take an attack without being brutally injured, but Paul paid no mind to that. Seeing the force of a mere Quick Attack push Weavile back that far showed him just how physically strong this bird was. Close Combat really would take his Weavile out with ease.

"Use Swords Dance!" Paul decided to enhance Weavile's own physical prowess, shown as Weavile's claws came apart and glowed in a dark purple hue, lengthening until Weavile's claws resembled giant scythe blades. Feeling the power course through its body, Weavile proudly slashed into the air and posed with eagerness; something Paul greatly struggled not to roll his eyes at.

Dawn watched Weavile, completely clueless. "What's that…?"

"It's called Swords Dance," Reggie explained for her. "And it increases its user's attack power."

Ash had power on his side, too, so he wasn't too concerned with this. "Now, Aerial Ace!"

Staraptor soared high into the air before making a turn to descend, planning to practically dive-bomb Weavile with the attack. This was an attack that had to be interrupted severely in order to miss or fail, so Paul attempted to do just that. "Blizzard!"

Though a special attack, Blizzard was still a very damaging move with more brute force behind it than any other move of its type. The fierce subzero winds coming from Weavile plus the chunks of ice and snow that came with the attack were more than enough to slow Staraptor's progress down significantly. This gave Paul the extra few seconds needed to interfere with Ash's attack.

"Now use Metal Claw!" he shouted; Weavile promptly followed through. Its claws glowed once more (brightly this time) while waiting for Staraptor to move in. Just as Ash was certain his Pokémon would land a hit, in mere milliseconds everything changed when Weavile managed to leap up and over Staraptor _just_ as they were about to make contact. No ordinary Pokémon could have made a move so quickly when an opponent was practically right in front of its face well within reach. Weavile didn't jump completely over Staraptor like a hurdle, though; instead, the Sharp Claw Pokémon latched itself to Staraptor's back… the group watching the action could hardly believe it. The motions were so fast and so fluid that their eyes could barely follow. But it made one important obvious now…

"Weavile's faster than Staraptor?" Brock cried out in shock. This revelation was not lost on Ash, and he was equally horrified to see the truth right before his eyes. This was the nasty surprise Paul wanted to spring on the lot, and just hearing the aspiring Pokémon Breeder holler that from the distance made him want to grin. While on top of Staraptor, Weavile landed two brutal Metal Claw hits on the most vulnerable part of Staraptor's body before jumping off, leaving the Predator Pokémon to crash-land on the ground.

Though Weavile was exceptionally strong compared to the average breed, it remained to be one of the more dim-witted members of Paul's team. As such, Paul actually needed to stay on this Pokémon's case in order to keep it from losing its attention span. "Go after it, Weavile!" Paul yelled at it; probably the most emotion he'd shown since the battle began. "Quick!"

The flustered Weavile did as commanded with haste, though it approached its prey in a rather flashy manner – doing so in a series of fancy backflips instead of just running at Staraptor, which would have been the fastest option. Though Dawn was in panic over Staraptor's predicament, she couldn't help but notice how stylish Weavile was in its pursuit. If in some strange, alternate universe that Paul would be a Coordinator instead of a battling Pokémon Trainer, she thought Weavile was sure to be one of the shining stars of his appeals. The Plumeria Contest was something she was completely unaware of, and thus Dawn would never realize the irony of her thoughts.

Paul was about to yell at it again, but he overheard Ash throwing in a desperate command. "It's comin'; Close Combat!"

"Metal Claw, now!" Paul called back, not really thinking about anything other than getting some sort of attack in before Staraptor could recover and take Weavile out swiftly with the attack he dreaded was coming sooner or later. It might've made more sense to go with an Ice-type attack while Staraptor was still on the ground, but either way Weavile stood a good chance of being overpowered since both Ice-type and Steel-type attacks would be overpowered by the Fighting-type Close Combat.

With its claws glowing again, Weavile struck at Staraptor; the latter of whom was already up on its feet and ready to counter. Ash's Pokémon hovered slightly over the ground as the two opponents engaged in a duel with their moves. After one brutal Close Combat smack from Staraptor's wing, however, Weavile found itself missing several of its hits despite being naturally faster than its opponent. Only one hit was needed to disorient Weavile, making its superior speed a non-issue as Staraptor landed several more blows on Weavile before knocking it back some distance away. Red sparks were showing around Weavile, showing the severe damage sustained.

"Staraptor… it has the advantage," Reggie understood. "That's a super-effective move. Even being weak to Blizzard, it's still better off than Weavile."

The Close Combat assault continued with Weavile being smacked around left and right; too hurt to retaliate on its own.

"Blizzard…!" Paul called out, this time in desperation. He'd gotten his point across, but he was not blind to Weavile's condition and knew it was no longer useful. This was likely to be Weavile's last chance to land an attack, and Paul knew it.

"Brave Bird; let's go!" Ash followed up. Knowing Staraptor needed to make some distance to charge the attack, he smirked as he watched the Predator Pokémon fly well out of Blizzard's range, evading it completely. While Blizzard kept going, Staraptor was sure to already be charged with energy before swiftly descending right in Weavile's direction. This way, the energy allowed Staraptor to easily crush the snow and ice threatening to pelt it and leave the Sharp Claw Pokémon completely defenseless as Staraptor landed a direct hit on its small, black opponent with its strongest attack.

The resulting collision triggered an explosion; one Staraptor was quick to fly away from, but not completely unscathed. It twitched, feeling the resulting recoil weaken it… as nearly all extremely powerful attacks had some sort of drawback to them. The smoke cleared away quickly this time, showing a critically-damaged Weavile unable to even open its eyes as its limp body swayed from one side to another before finally collapsing.

"Weavile is unable to battle, so Staraptor is the winner!" Olivier made official. On the scoreboard, Weavile's image not only grayed out, but its details disappeared until only a silhouette of its shape remained in the frame. This was to show that the Pokémon in question was defeated and unable to be called on for the remainder of the battle.

Proud of its victory, Staraptor landed directly in front of Ash to receive its deserved praise.

"Staraptor, you were awesome!" Ash congratulated; Pikachu also gave Staraptor props for defeating a Pokémon that it not only had a type advantage against, but a disadvantage in speed as well. The Predator Pokémon let out a well-deserved cry of victory.

"Alright!" Dawn cheered; her spirit now revived thanks to the battle's end result. "That's one Pokémon down!"

At the very least, Paul expected this would happen. He silently recalled Weavile back into its Pokéball and tucked it away. While normally cold, callous, and unhesitant to take his anger out on a Pokémon of his for failing, Paul continued to be sure to show no emotion whatsoever. He was the first one to lose a Pokémon this time around, but that was also the case when he battled Brandon. Being shaken up that early on doomed him for the rest of the battle… Ash was a witness to that, in fact. This was a brutal test for Paul to endure, but the ten days he spent disciplining himself went a long way… and even though Ash was currently in the lead, the training already showed results in Ash being thrown off guard a few times already. This early on, Paul already ascertained what Ash's entire team was before they were all revealed. That would mean Paul's comeback was a definite inevitability.

Though Ash was surprised to see Paul so nonchalant about being the first one to have a Pokémon fall in battle, he glared and mentally reminded himself that this battle was still just getting started. This was not the time to be celebrating already; not when he saw just how talented that Weavile was. If Staraptor hadn't learned Close Combat, it undoubtedly would have lost this match. This win was nothing more than a lucky circumstance for Ash; already nearly losing two Pokémon to Torterra alone made him dread thinking of the four Pokémon Paul hadn't revealed yet.

"Finally, a Pokémon hits the dirt," James commented.

"But if ya think da' twoi'p's runnin' happily in da' park, think again," Meowth said, noticing Ash's very short-lived celebration.

Jessie hung her head; the brutal nature of the battle's beginning was already taking a toll on her weary, overworked mind. "Ahh, I'm ready for a battle nap…"

Ash saw no sense in keeping Staraptor out any longer; taking a hit from Stone Edge right off greatly weakened his Pokémon already. The stress of this delicate situation with Weavile was almost too much for Ash to bear. "Alight. Staraptor, return!" he commanded as the Predator Pokémon was recalled. Ash looked down at Staraptor's Pokémon with relief. "You deserve a good rest."

"Electabuzz, stand by for battle!" Paul was heard from the distance, unleashing the third member of his team.

"Grotle, I choose you!" Ash followed up; this was a strategic choice based on type, as Ash knew Electric-type moves wouldn't work well on Grotle, whose defenses were enhanced since evolving despite losing a great deal of speed. Grotle was to Ash as Weavile was to Paul – though as a Turtwig, it _was_ a speedy Pokémon like the rest. Now Ash was forced to carry on with a Pokémon that he wasn't very good at training or battling with.

Both Electabuzz and Grotle's images appeared on the third and fifth slot respectively on the trainers' scoreboard. Staraptor's image was grayed out. It really was telling who had the advantage here, since Paul fully expected Grotle to be on Ash's roster. With only one Pokémon left unveiled, and knowing how insistent Ash was on proving his point with a certain Pokémon that became the focus point of their rivalry… yes, it was painfully obvious who the last Pokémon was. With only half of his team unveiled, Paul could now build supplemental strategies on the fly.

Meanwhile, Ash was frustrated when he realized Paul wasn't going to switch out despite his disadvantage on the field now. He couldn't understand why, and he had no idea what Paul would have in store for him in regards to his last three unveiled Pokémon. "An Electric-type… what's he _up_ to?" he muttered under his breath. Since Paul was making no move to attack, Ash decided to take the initiative. "Alright, Grotle! Energy Ball!"

Grotle quickly charged and launched a shining green Grass-type attack of the special variety straight at its target. Paul watched the attack quickly make its way over to his side of the field; he waited for the right moment again, as he knew _exactly_ what to do here. "Light Screen; let's go!"

Electabuzz spread out its arms, forming a bright box of light around itself. The attack collided into the odd shield formed around the Electric Pokémon; damage was taken, but it was obviously minimal as Electabuzz didn't even flinch. In fact, it even grinned at how unfazed it was by Grotle's attack. The box dissipated afterwards, but this wouldn't be the last time it would be showing up.

"Electabuzz took Grotle's Energy Ball!" Dawn exclaimed, because like many things in this battle this wasn't making any sense to her. Even with Light Screen's interference, Electabuzz _was_ hit with the attack…

"Light Screen is a move that cuts the effect of special attacks down by half," Brock informed her. "Energy Ball is a special attack, so Electabuzz barely felt it."

Just then, Paul recalled Electabuzz, shocking Ash and a good deal of the onlookers.

"Paul's switching Pokémon already?" This was getting to be a headache. Ash knew Light Screen would render Grotle's Energy Ball almost powerless, so with that kind of advantage, why did Paul choose _then_ to switch out? Unfortunately, even Pikachu was just as clueless about the rival's motives.

"Honchkrow, stand by for battle!" Paul yelled, showing off his fourth Pokémon. The scoreboard was quickly updated to show Honchkrow being active on the field and Electabuzz reserved for later. Paul saw no harm in showing off another Pokémon this soon, because this matchup was one that was sure to play in his favor. It was one that had happened not too long ago, as a matter of fact. Knowing Ash's emotions weren't nearly as controlled as his were, Paul figured Ash would be making an extremely dumb choice here in the next few seconds because of this.

Honchkrow stared down at Grotle from its high position in the sky. Grotle was glaring back, and when Ash noticed this, he knew this was about to get ugly. "Uh-oh… Honchkrow…"

Reggie looked curious as to why there seemed to be such bad blood between these two Pokémon, so Brock was quick to fill him in. "Those two Pokémon battled against each other before, and right in the middle of the whole thing, Turtwig evolved into Grotle."

"Ah, now I see," Reggie understood, nodding. "Then Grotle's angry reaction goes back to that battle. Even so, it wouldn't be a good idea for Ash to keep Grotle in there…"

"Because Honchkrow's got the type advantage, right?" Dawn asked. "In the last battle, there wasn't much Turtwig could do against Honchkrow except dodge, and after it became Grotle, that advantage was lost, too."

Reggie couldn't believe Paul never filled him in on any of this… then again, he sort of could. Paul never was one to talk about the specifics of his journey unless Reggie was very insistent about getting to know them. That was something that helped Paul keep his horrible secret off his brother's mind all the past week. "Yeah… but that's not all," he finally said to the young Coordinator. "Remember last week when Paul battled Brandon, what Brandon said to Paul after the battle was over?"

It didn't take Brock long to recall this. "That his emotions betrayed him… Paul couldn't control them, which was why he lost to Brandon so badly."

"Right; it's important to know when you're beat," Reggie affirmed. "Paul was so stubborn back then, feeling that he had something to prove… even if we all knew a lot earlier than he did that his efforts would be futile. I guarantee it; if Ash doesn't switch out now, you'll be seeing the exact same scenario again."

"Oh, Ash," Dawn said tiredly. "I really hope he doesn't play into it. He should've learned from that, too!"

Ash was obviously apprehensive about leaving Grotle out there against this particular opponent. The last battle ended in a pretty traumatic way; the last thing Ash wanted was to see that happen again. But Grotle seemed to know Ash would be having doubts here, so the Grove Pokémon looked back to its trainer, eagerly insisting it be kept in this battle. Even in the face of danger, Grotle still wanted revenge no matter what.

Seeing that confidence easily convinced Ash to let Grotle stay. "Alright, Grotle! You're on! It's time to show those two what you've got!"

"Wha…?" Dawn was aghast. She really thought Ash would have known better… "But Honchkrow's got the advantage because of type! Ash, what are you _doing?_"

With this decision, Ash had sealed Grotle's fate; Paul knew it, and even he couldn't help cracking a wry smile at this. It felt so _good_ to be the one running this battle after all the losses he suffered.

"Grotle, Razor Leaf!" Ash commanded, determined to knock the Big Boss Pokémon right out of the sky. Through an attack that wouldn't have much effect, this would be little more than a pipe dream. Without fear, Honchkrow dove in straight at Grotle, effortlessly dodging the barrage of leaves.

"Night Slash!" was Paul's call. He decided he'd toy around with this match, even only briefly… this satisfactory match-up and the memories of the days before Paul was held back by his crippling disease were too precious to let go.

The right wing of Honchkrow glowed a dark purple color as the airborne Pokémon landed a direct hit upon its earthbound opponent. Honchkrow was considerably powerful, given that the neutral hit still sent the hefty Grotle skidding back a few feet. Still, with enhanced defenses, Grotle was able to shake it off and press on. It wasn't about to go down this quickly against Honchkrow; not with the powerful motivation called revenge keeping the Grove Pokémon going.

Ash was relieved, seeing how it wasn't so bad after all to have an aspiring tank on his team. "Alright, Grotle! Energy Ball!"

The overconfident Kanto native had forgotten an important detail when he made this move; something that would aggravate him even further. While Grotle's attack made a direct hit on Honchkrow, it remained almost completely unaffected not only due to Honchkrow resisting the type, but the familiar box of light reappeared after the attack made contact.

"What the…? Light Screen?" Ash forgot the crucial detail to this move, being far too absorbed in Grotle's determination for getting back at Honchkrow to pay it any mind.

"So I guess the effects of Light Screen must carry through to the next Pokémon," Dawn said as she studied the battle. "Is that right?"

Brock nodded. "Not only does Honchkrow have a type advantage, but with Light Screen still in play, it decreases the damage from Grotle's special attacks." He did not like where this was going; Reggie was absolutely right about Grotle being doomed to lose if Ash chose to keep it in. "Paul's goal is obviously to overwhelm Ash."

"He wants to overwhelm Ash…?" Dawn echoed; when she thought about it, it made a lot of sense that this would be the case.

Reggie's eyes remained focused on the battlefield. "Yeah," he grimly affirmed. "I wasn't certain until now… but Paul really _did_ learn his lesson from last time."

Paul wasn't paying any mind to what the spectators were gabbing about. Once he got to work in battle, his commands were swiftly carried out and very professional in nature. "Now use Haze!"

As Honchkrow covered the battlefield with plumes of dark smoke, Dawn had to speak her mind of something she felt very strongly from what she had seen so far. "You know, now that you mention it, Paul's battle style seems different from usual."

"That's true," Brock agreed. "Normally the battles we've seen Paul in are ones where he's busy polishing his Pokémon's moves or when his complete objective is testing their strength."

"Razor Leaf; let's go!" Ash was heard in the smoggy battlefield. Though Grotle expertly shot its attack through the Haze, it missed Honchkrow by a mile.

"But it's not like that at all today," Brock finished.

Though Reggie was happy for his brother, he still felt bad for Ash being completely taken over like this. It really was no different from Paul and Brandon's battle as far as one-sidedness went. "A Pokémon battle will test both a trainer's intellectual ability as well as judgment," he stated; since this was the first full battle between the two, it was easy to see why Paul was behaving differently this time, especially after what he suffered through. "Yeah, Paul has dissected Ash's battling style that keeps Ash from battling soundly… and that means Paul's going at it with nothing less for his goal for a 100% sure win."

This battle truly highlighted how much Paul took after Brandon. When he put his mind to it, Paul really could be every bit as fierce, fearless, and stoic as his father in battle. Just as Brandon's ability to read his son like a book enabled him to decipher Paul's battling style very quickly – which ensured his own victory – Paul had battled Ash enough to predict his every move, knowing his unbridled emotions and attachment to his Pokémon was a huge detriment to his potential as of now. Even though Paul had grown to respect the bond between trainer and Pokémon over the past ten days, he still wouldn't be overt about it. He wasn't really sure if it was his success in bonding with his Pokémon that made him so much stronger now or if it was merely Ash being easy to predict, but either way Paul finally realized what was accomplished with all his training. Even though he never could overpower Reggie, both himself and his Pokémon continued to become stronger and more well-rounded individuals for it. As many trainers would say, there's not much to be learned from winning; it was through _losses_ when lessons were learned. Paul had spent a grueling three weeks doing nothing but lose every single battle he engaged in; only now could he see just how much better he and his Pokémon had become.

"Grotle's taken a lot of damage," Ash grumbled. Things were stacked so heavily against him that he knew Grotle would be knocked out soon unless its health could somehow be preserved. But that served as the perfect incentive to call his next strategic move. "Use Synthesis!"

While the Grove Pokémon stood tall to absorb the sunlight available to it, Paul was quick to find a nice way to make this backfire. "Now, Sky Attack, quick!"

Even if this required a bit of time to charge, it wasn't like Grotle was going anywhere. It had to stay stationary in order to recover health. This was another example of Paul excelling using the knowledge of his opponent's species based on his experience with the same kind of Pokémon. No doubt he had learned much from raising Torterra, and that included what was the best way to restore health and when. Really, Paul never saw much point in bothering with weather-dependent moves like Synthesis when Absorb, Mega Drain, and Giga Drain could restore ample amounts of health at any time during battle that would only serve to the user's benefit and the target's inevitable defeat.

"Oh no!" Dawn called out, looking fearful of what was about to happen. "But Grotle hasn't finished recovering yet!"

Honchkrow was charging up much faster than Ash expected it to, leaving him to growl quietly as his frustration escalated. He had no choice but to cut Synthesis short, or else face the consequences of a seriously powerful super-effective attack. "Now Grotle, use Rock Climb!"

It was disorienting for Grotle to halt its own recovery process in order to be able to prepare for the attack it was about to take, but in the nick of time it was able to extend its front claws and rise up on its hind legs to prepare for Honchkrow. With Honchkrow already engaged in attack mode, Paul allowed himself to be completely bewildered with Ash's choice of move for Grotle here. _Rock Climb?_ Really? Paul couldn't fathom why Ash taught Grotle this, and he wouldn't be finding out anytime soon.

Though Grotle was in prime attacking position, this really wasn't the right move to counter with; Honchkrow easily overpowered its opponent with Sky Attack upon collision. The force had them both skidding across the ground an even greater distance than before, kicking up a huge dust cloud inadvertently. Not long after that, Honchkrow flew out of there looking relatively unscathed as it cried out in triumph. Evidently, it accomplished what it was set to do.

The same could not be said for Grotle, who was visible after the dust cleared: knocked over and immobile.

"Grotle is unable to battle and the winner is Honchkrow!" Olivier announced.

James sang along as he updated the scoreboard. "Bringing into action both twerps a Pokémon writer!" And so Grotle's image faded into a monotone silhouette, just like Weavile's.

"Grotle, return!" Ash recalled his unfortunate longtime Sinnoh partner back into its Pokéball. "You really battled well," he assured it, even though Grotle didn't make much of a dent in Honchkrow's health at all. He looked to Paul, unsurprised that he refused to congratulate his Honchkrow for a job well done, while said rival silently chose to recall Honchkrow at this time.

"Ash miscalculated the timing on when to use Synthesis," Reggie stated with a heavy heart; having grown lately to trust his instincts more, he was not surprised to find that he was precisely right about Grotle having no chance in there.

Dawn looked at Reggie, not sure what he was getting at. "Huh?"

"Using healing moves leaves your Pokémon completely vulnerable," the breeder told her. "Consider your opponent's condition; _then_ use it…. Or be an easy target like Grotle."

Brock agreed completely. "It sounds like Ash is feeling a _lot_ of pressure," he figured.

"You think so?" Dawn asked him. Brock had been very skeptical of Ash's decisions since the beginning, though in normal circumstances Brock was always supportive of his friend. Still, it didn't make him unable to see where his friend was screwing up.

"Ash wanted Grotle to defeat Honchkrow so badly that it clouded his judgment," Brock reminded Dawn. "That's what Reggie was getting at earlier when he mentioned Paul and Brandon's battle; Paul was blinded by revenge and his desire to prove a point to Brandon, Ash, and Reggie, which prevented him from seeing the bigger picture. Even though Ash watched that battle, he failed to pick up on Brandon's moral of the story…" Brock hated to be this negative, but every bit of what he was saying was true. "But Paul clearly did. So if Ash keeps going on like this now, he'll have to learn about keeping his emotions under control the same way Paul did… with a _crushing_ defeat."

"Ah…" Dawn had nothing to say to that. She chose to look on at Ash worriedly, as she obviously didn't want Ash to go through that. It was haunting enough seeing how frighteningly out-of-control Paul was; it was beyond even the creative Dawn's imagination to envision Ash in the same scenario.

The shaken Ash was conflicted with indecision now. He'd have a hard time forgiving himself for failing to avenge Grotle, but he was snapped out of his trance when he felt a pair of small, determined hands grasp a small part of his jeans. Looking down, Ash saw Pikachu all fired up. Its gestures were obvious indications that it wanted in on the action, _immediately_.

"Huh? You wanna get in the battle, Pikachu?" Ash asked him, now fully hesitant to make any rash decision without thinking it over.

"Pika-Pikachu!" was the response; a very assured one. After seeing Grotle fall to Honchkrow again, Pikachu was _angry_. This was the perfect opportunity to let out its anger.

Ash always liked seeing this kind of spirit in his team. Even if he wasn't in high spirits himself now, Ash still had his Pokémon and he had to keep in mind that he was doing this for their sake. From now on, he'd have to play it smart so that Grotle's loss wouldn't have been in vain. "Yes!" he said, allowing Pikachu to step forth. "Then you get in there, buddy, and show some of your power! Now let's move, Pikachu!"

"Pikaaa!" Pikachu dashed to the frontline. Sparks of electricity emitting from its cheeks showed the Mouse Pokémon's readiness to fight.

Paul knew this was coming sooner or later; Pikachu was first and foremost the sure bet to be in any iteration of Ash's team. Being undeniably his rival's strongest, Paul made sure to formulate multiple strategies on that particular Pokémon. For this occasion, he decided to step up his mental game on Ash and show him something that would surely surprise him. "Magmortar, stand by for battle!"

A large, bulky figure was unleashed, casting a shadow over the tiny Pikachu while murmuring its name. As expected, there was shock and awe… and Ash knew immediately this Pokémon was a lot smaller the last time he saw it.

"Magmortar," he muttered, biting his lip. "Man, he really evolved his Magmar!"

Paul owed Reggie some deep gratitude for being able to have a Magmortar in the first place; it was one of many things accomplished during the ten-day training period. Since it had taken the most punishment in the battle against Brandon as a Magmar and desperately needed special training due to being a fairly recent capture of Paul's (to replace Chimchar, of course), Reggie made sure to bring it up to speed, and thus came the giant beast seen at this moment. Just seeing Magmortar stand tall and proudly before Ash's modest little Pikachu reminded Paul that he and his team truly had come much further along in their training than he gave credit for.

Magmortar stared down at its opponent and the opponent's trainer, calmly uttering "Mag…" while waiting for orders. For its atrocious performance against Brandon, Magmortar strongly desired to make up for that letdown here and now. Though big and ominous, Magmortar was relatively calm compared to most of Paul's large Pokémon; basically like Torterra, only without the seniority.

Ash had a hard time shaking off the initial fear coming with seeing this newly-evolved Pokémon. At a loss for words, he could only quietly utter the fiery beast's name with bitterness, as if he were cursing the Pokémon before he looked intently back to his Pikachu. "Pikachu, now don't let your guard down!" he warned.

While Pikachu looked back to give its trainer an affirmative "Pika!", Dawn pulled out her PokéDex to learn more about what Ash was getting himself into.

"_Magmortar, the Blast Pokémon and the evolved form of Magmar. It launches fireballs that can reach temperatures over three-thousand six-hundred degrees from the ends of its arms and lives in volcanic craters."_

"Geez," Dawn mumbled. "I can't even imagine something that hot. That'd be enough to evaporate the whole lake…" Paul's Pokémon never failed to disappoint in having unnerving PokéDex entries, it seemed. The young Coordinator looked to her fellow spectators, having another question for them. "Since Paul knew that Ash was going to use Pikachu, why isn't he using a Ground-type Pokémon like Torterra instead?"

"He may be thinking using a Ground-type won't matter, because Ash could simply switch Pikachu to a Water-type like Buizel at any time," Brock speculated. "I can't remember the last time I've seen so many switches in one sitting, but obviously it's become an important part to both Ash and Paul's strategy."

Reggie looked on at the battlefield, deciding to share his thoughts as well. "Yeah; both don't see the harm in switching in and out on a whim so long as that privilege is available to them, and it allows for both of them to alter and adapt the strategies they've thought up before the battle so they can be utilized to their maximum potential," he correctly assumed. "But Paul's not just thinking about types; he's thinking two steps ahead. I'm certain he realized just as we did how meaningless type matches were against someone like Brandon, so there's no doubt in my mind my brother's intention is to recreate that scenario for Ash. I'm sure as the battle progresses, we'll find out why Magmortar's up."

Brock was highly aware of how frequently Reggie was referencing that battle. What he was saying made sense to the aspiring Top Breeder, of course, but his hunch in regards to there being a more complicated backstory to Brandon and the small family he defeated with ease than Reggie was letting on was stronger than ever. Brock was not blind to the very apparent hatred in Paul's eyes as he battled the Pyramid King. It just seemed far too extreme for a mere desire to do what his brother couldn't… after all that, Paul not only learned his lesson, but he was implementing strategies similar to Brandon's own in order to win this battle. If Paul hated the man and had no connection to him whatsoever other than just seeing him a couple of times before, why would he do this?

Not only that, but the more Brock watched Paul in action here, the similarities in his mannerisms and stance to the Pyramid King's became more obvious. Brock strongly felt this couldn't merely be a coincidence anymore, and once this battle was over, he was intent on getting a straight answer out of Reggie if only to put those suspicions to rest one way or another.

"Pikachu, let's go!" Ash shouted, now that the Magmortar revelation had finally sunk in. "Quick Attack, now!"

The hefty Magmortar had no chance of outdoing Pikachu in a match of speed, and Paul knew that. Priority moves like Quick Attack especially made such an idea even more ridiculous, so Paul allowed for Magmortar to take the hit, which it did so right in the chest. Pikachu had pounced on the Blast Pokémon in hopes of knocking it over, but while the force of Quick Attack was enough to force the foe back a small distance, stumbling backwards the whole way, Magmortar remained standing without too much difficulty. Magmortar smirked at the futile effort, and this gesture confused Ash. The reason for this became apparent moments later after Pikachu rebounded off the big belly of Magmortar and back to its side of the field.

A shrill cry from Pikachu was heard as a spontaneous combustion of flames engulfed Pikachu's entire body for a brief few seconds. All present but Paul and his Pokémon were taken aback by shock, but who could blame them?

"Pikachu…!" Ash wailed, immensely worried and confused as to what just happened. Thankfully, the torment didn't last for long, though the flames were damaging enough to wear Pikachu down to the point where it had to lay upon one knee for support.

Dawn especially had never seen a phenomenon like this before. She had doubts that this was anything normal. "Magmortar hasn't done a thing, so what's going on?" she asked, distressed.

"That's Magmortar's ability called Flame Body," Brock explained, as he was quick to identify what would cause this otherwise illogical event. "When a move that makes direct contact hits Magmortar, there's a chance its opponent will get burned."

Shocking a large group of people like this – Ash especially – was enough to draw out that creepy smile of Paul's again. He honestly couldn't remember the last time he felt so self-assured… normally, Paul was like that almost all the time, but after his life had thrown so many horrendous things his way, it was impossible to maintain that confidence. At a time like this, Paul even forgot that he was ill.

Much as Ash hated to be having second thoughts already about his choice to send Pikachu into this battle, the sight of his first Pokémon struggling to stand back up after being burned like that made him want to reconsider. "Pikachu, are you alright?" he called out; Ash suspected Pikachu wouldn't quit this soon, but he wanted to see his Pokémon prove to him that it was still able to fight.

Pikachu called back an affirmation as it managed to force itself to stand, then poised itself for whatever attack Ash would call next.

"Alright," Ash conceded, though he had a bad feeling about what he was doing here. "Then Pikachu, Thunderbolt!"

As a seasoned veteran of Pokémon battling, Pikachu's Thunderbolt attacks were now strong enough to actually _tear through_ the ground. There was a reason why Paul took an interest in that Pokémon, after all, but Paul had no intention of letting his Pokémon simply get hit again.

"Magmortar, Flamethrower!" he commanded, certain that this would cause a nasty explosion. Even with all the progress made, Paul didn't expect Magmortar to overpower Ash's strongest Pokémon, but at the very least it was strong enough to match its Flamethrower's power with Thunderbolt's. The attacks collided in the center of the field, triggering a blinding explosion shortly after. While Ash flinched and shielded his face from the carnage, Paul's stance didn't change a bit. Even with his hair being blown back by the force of the combined attacks, Paul didn't even bat an eye at the sight.

"Man, that's powerful," Ash quietly commented as the chaos finally dissipated. He was quick to react once it was safe to move around in the battlefield again. "Alright, Volt Tackle; go!"

That was the attack Paul took great interest to, as it was a rarity to see even within the Pikachu species and its relatives. At the speed Pikachu was going, Paul didn't have the luxury of waiting for the right opportunity to strike. But that was fine; for this Pokémon, Paul had a different approach in mind. "Use Rock Tomb!"

Using one arm, Magmortar's cannon charged with energy and quickly fired off small Rock Tomb blasts in spurts. The rocks planted on the battlefield served as obstacles for Pikachu, who was too engaged in its straightforward attack to dodge them all. Luckily for Ash, Pikachu was strong enough to simply burst through these rocks thanks to the strong barrier of electric energy charged around Pikachu's body every time Volt Tackle was performed. Across the battlefield, Pikachu was able to burst through several Rock Tomb obstacles, but doing this over and over took a toll on Pikachu's stamina. With Magmortar almost within reach, the last obstacle was a significantly larger rock to break through. However, Pikachu had completely lost its momentum as its energy dropped, and instead of bursting through the final rock, the obstacle simply repelled Pikachu back a few feet.

Volt Tackle was cancelled out by the physical strain, and if that weren't unfortunate enough, Pikachu was suddenly engulfed by the flames again. The sight and Pikachu's screech of pain was hard to watch for several of the spectators.

"Pikachu, ya gotta hang in there!" Ash pleaded, clearly desperate to keep his Pikachu from being knocked out this early on. Ash's words of encouragement always seemed to serve as a convenient second wind for any of his Pokémon. Pikachu managed to stagger back up; safe to assume it was officially _furious_ at this point.

"Did you see that?" Jessie asked her companions in awe; for all the times Pikachu had fried her and her group for years, it was hard to believe that same Pokémon they sought after for so long was getting tossed around this easily.

James was just as aghast. "That's enough to give _me_ nightmares!" he wailed.

"Use Smog!" was Paul's next order. Just like Honchkrow with Haze, Paul intended to lower the visibility range of the battlefield. Magmortar did this by blowing out the slightly toxic smoke from its mouth.

With Ash feeling somewhat of a second wind as well, he was determined to not let Paul get away with this, so with a certain gesture to Pikachu, he shouted out his next move to make this ploy backfire. "Pikachu, Thunderbolt!"

Instead of using the attack the way it normally did, Pikachu executed the move by dropping down to the ground and spinning its body rapidly, as if it were breakdancing. Paul kept his eyes on this execution, as it was something he'd never seen before. Instead of the usual burst of ground-breaking lightning, a _vortex_ of electricity formed over Pikachu as it continued its movements. Gaining control of the air as long as Pikachu remained spinning, this odd rendition of Thunderbolt in vortex form managed to clear up the battlefield completely.

"What…?" Paul was in control of himself well enough to not completely drop his composure, but he understandably couldn't help but gape at this foreign technique. He would obviously have to find another way to pull off his next intended move.

This performance got a simultaneous "Wow!" from the Team Rocket trio. This seemed to be more along the lines of what would be seen in a Contest, truth be told.

"Pikachu used Thunderbolt Counter Shield, awesome!" Dawn marveled at the sight. Being a Coordinator herself, she especially liked this technique that was created from a combination of Ash's Contest experience and his inspiration from when he first met Fantina.

"That's amazing how it totally got rid of the smog!" Reggie said almost excitedly. Given how ominous this battle had been for poor Ash, it was nice to see the boy from Pallet Town still had a few tricks up his sleeve.

"It's really both an offensive _and_ defensive move," Brock told him. "Ash developed it when he battled Fantina at Hearthome Gym."

Just as Reggie thought quietly to himself that this "Counter Shield" technique would actually be very beneficial for his brother's battling style, said brother was thinking the exact same thing as he closely studied the Counter Shield right up until Pikachu was finished. He wisely chose not to have Magmortar attempt to disrupt it, and so the Blast Pokémon maintained its distance.

Ash was about to brag to Paul about his innovative technique, but that was cut off as he heard Pikachu screech again, being afflicted with its burned status once more.

"Oh…!" Dawn almost hopped up out of her seat in surprise; those flames always came out when she least expected them to. "Pikachu's _still_ burned?"

"It's Magmortar's Flame Body," Reggie reminded her. "The Burn effect is still going on, and it won't wear off over time." The Pokémon Breeder was back to his somber, serious self as the adrenaline from the Counter Shield excitement wore down. "This is looking _bad_," he admitted. "The longer this battle continues, the greater the disadvantage for Pikachu."

Brock was also back into his serious, realist point of view. "That Burn will keep sapping away Pikachu's energy bit by bit, and on top of that, a burned Pokémon can only attack with _half_ its physical strength. Paul's made sure that there'll be no way Pikachu can battle to its full potential."

"Magmortar, Flamethrower!" Paul called for, ready to take that pesky Pikachu out after he was done considering the mechanics behind the technique it just displayed. With both of its massive cannon arms, Magmortar unleashed a massive wave of fire coming straight for Pikachu.

"Use Iron Tail from above!" Ash countered, not about to subject his Pikachu to any more fiery torment. Pikachu managed to jump high into the air just as the flames smothered the area it had previously stood at. Its tail charged the energy quickly, and with a fancy twirl, the Mouse Pokémon landed a direct hit right on stop of Magmortar's head. Again, Paul saw no point to dodge when Pikachu was so fast and his Magmortar was a very huge target. That simply couldn't be helped.

Though Magmortar was knocked back considerably, reeling with the pain from that sustained blow, it still remained solid on the ground with its two feet. As Pikachu comfortably landed back on its side of the field, the Burn took precedence once more. Though brief, the pain inflicted was great… and after so many times with that, Pikachu had lost a considerable amount of energy, hunching over as it struggled to remain on its feet.

A very worried Ash could no longer stand to see this happening every other time Pikachu landed an attack. It was time to switch. "Quick, Pikachu! Come here!"

"Pika…?" Pikachu wearily looked over to its partner before scampering over to his side. "Pikapi?"

"You battled hard," Ash commended. "So get some rest, 'kay?"

That wasn't exactly what Pikachu wanted, but it could understand why Ash insisted on this. With a little reluctance, Pikachu conceded to rest up. So long as it wasn't batting, Pikachu wouldn't be burned at minute intervals.

"Now, Buizel! I choose you!" Ash hollered, letting out a Pokémon that had seen virtually no action so far. As much as it loved to fight, Buizel was pleased to finally have its turn.

"The twerp's sealing the deal with a Water-type!" James sung out as he and his comrades updated the scoreboard.

"Putting it onscreen!" the other two announced; Pikachu and Buizel's images swapping their active/inactive statuses.

Dawn smiled, happy to see the Pokémon that was once under her ownership out and ready to get in on the action. "Buizel, you can do it!" she cheered on. Even if Buizel was no longer hers, Dawn would always feel close to it. Fellow Water-type Piplup also joined in on the cheering.

"Aqua Jet…!" Ash yelled, determined to take the Blast Pokémon down. Having an advantage in type now, he was in fairly good spirits. Magmortar had already taken ample amounts of damage from Pikachu…

Immersed in a stream of rapid water summoned all on its own, Buizel made a beeline for its target and collided into Magmortar's chest for a direct, super-effective hit. The force behind Aqua Jet was enough to push Magmortar back a bit, though it remained sturdy in its stationary position. Not being a complete dimwit with the memory of a Goldeen, Ash knew from previous examples in this battle alone that it was unwise to stay in close proximity to Paul's Pokémon for long. Ash decided to put a bit of distance between the two Pokémon while continuing with the full assault. "Water Pulse!"

Buizel hopped back with finesse (possibly force of habit from its initial training with Dawn) as it got out of Magmortar's range of reach, summoning a glowing ball of water that the Sea Weasel Pokémon quickly slammed onto the ground. The spherical form of Water Pulse burst with the force of hundreds of popping water balloons, resulting in a massive tidal wave coming straight for Magmortar.

"Now, Rock Tomb!" Paul calmly ordered, deciding this to be a good time to try out one of his failed strategies with a different approach.

With precious little time before the water would collide into the Fire-type, Magmortar rapid-fired a series of giant rocks protruding from the ground to form a makeshift shield large enough to cover its massive girth.

With Buizel in the fray now, Dawn was especially paying close attention to every little detail of this battle, and she was notably surprised that Magmortar did not simply fire those large rocks at Buizel instead. They were strong enough to short out Volt Tackle, so she figured there was a good chance they'd be able to break up the mass of water coming its way as well.

"They're using Rock Tomb as a shield…!" Brock realized, though this wasn't too hard to figure out for anyone watching this battle.

Ash simply smirked; he could see what Paul was going for here, supposedly, but his arrogance and confidence took precedence over what else was going on in his mind as he thought he had Paul cornered at last. "That move's got no chance against a Water-type attack," he boasted. "Alright Buizel, use Aqua Jet!"

In a way, Ash was correct. The Rock Tomb shield was already taking a beating from the Water Pulse barrage; Aqua Jet was a more direct and concentrated attack… and since anything Rock-typed (moves or Pokémon) was vulnerable to Water-types, the shield definitely wouldn't hold up for long. Once Buizel made contact with the shield within its Aqua Jet, the shield burst into rubble, just as Ash had planned. To the surprise of Ash and Buizel, however, their target was nowhere to be seen behind the makeshift shield. Buizel slowly looked up from where Magmortar _should_ have been, only to see its calm, collected trainer staring right back at it as he called for the next attack. "Smog; let's go!"

"Oh no…!" Ash was caught off-guard _again._ The fact that Paul wasn't looking anywhere but at his opponents didn't give away Magmortar's position until it was too late.

Buizel noticed a shadow cast over itself; one much too large to be considered its own. Finally looking up, the Sea Weasel Pokémon could only utter a flabbergasted "Bui?" when it realized Magmortar was airborne and already in mid-descent. This was what Paul was trying to accomplish with Magmortar a bit earlier. From the Blast Pokémon's mouth came another burst of thick, obscuring smoke. This time the target Pokémon was caught up in it, wincing from the toxicity of Smog, which Buizel was forced to inhale.

"Buizel!" Ash shouted helplessly as his mind rushed through his myriad of strategies to find a way out of this. This folly was all on Ash for being overconfident again; no doubt about that.

"That Rock Tomb wasn't just a shield; it was for keeping Buizel from seeing what Magmortar was up to!" Brock exclaimed, as even he was startled by Paul's newest strategic move.

As Magmortar landed safely on the ground near the weakened Buizel, it was suddenly recalled back into its Pokéball.

"He's switching _now?_" Ash wondered out loud, clearly unable to keep up with his rival.

"Ursaring, stand by for battle!" Paul called, unleashing his ill-mannered powerhouse this time. Team Rocket updated the scoreboard to reflect this, and by this point they were becoming annoyed with the frequent switches throughout this full battle. However, Ursaring was Paul's final Pokémon revealed, so now the bitter rival had laid all the cards out on the table for Ash to see. But Paul obviously had no concern for this; he'd been holding Ursaring back this long for a reason.

Ash wasn't too terribly concerned; he'd seen Ursaring in action so many times that he didn't expect there would be any surprises to be had this time. "Buizel, use Water Gun now!" he yelled, hoping to restore his Pokémon's momentum.

Buizel shot a stream of water from its mouth, keeping its distance from the Hibernation Pokémon while doing so. If nothing else, Ash still remained focused on the fact that he needed to focus on attacks capable of being used from a distance in order to evade Paul's more devastating attacks. He didn't want any of his Pokémon trapped in the position his unfortunate Gliscor was in.

"Ursaring, Hammer Arm!" Paul figured Ash was wise to his strategy of the aforementioned regard, but that was something he could easily work around. Ursaring knew from the tone of its trainer's voice that this Hammer Arm was not meant for Buizel directly (otherwise it would have to charge right through the brutal water to reach its target); instead, this move was intended for disabling the oncoming attack itself.

This was shown with the roaring Ursaring charging its right hand with the energy needed for Hammer Arm, then winding up as if it were a baseball player up to bat, finally swinging forth its arm to collide with the Water Gun attack. The white-hot energy from Hammer Arm triggered a brief, blinding flash when the two attacks made contact; when the steam cleared up, it was apparent that Ursaring merely _flung_ the attack away with one hand and effectively evaporated most of it in the process. Paul would have preferred that Ursaring simply smack the attack right back at Buizel, but this merely made the quiet trainer understand that there was always room for him and his team to grow stronger. Controlling the energy behind Hammer Arm and perhaps a bit more finesse in Ursaring's throwing ability would give Paul the results he wanted… but that was for another day. For now, Paul relished in Ash's look of abject horror as he watched what had happened here.

"How did he counter Buizel's Water Gun?" Ash wailed, no doubt worried about how he'd be able to make a dent in Ursaring if it could negate long-range attacks.

"Now, Bulk Up!" Paul decided next, sternly watching his Ursaring clutch its fists together before throwing its massive arms up in the air with a mighty roar. A reddish aura enveloped the Hibernation Pokémon's body… and Ash knew what this meant.

"Ursaring just raised its offense _and_ defense," he acknowledged, sounding worried at first… but this fight had just gotten started, and his Buizel was still in fairly good shape to battle. Figuring there was no point in worrying too much, Ash cast his concerns aside and let out a cocky smile, shaking his head. "Ah, who cares? Buizel, Aqua Jet!"

Paul was not the only one who found Ash to be a complete and utter _fool_ for saying that; Reggie and Brock disapproved of this as well, and even Dawn was showing a bit of cynicism after hearing that remark. It eerily reminded the rookie Coordinator of her own overconfident, unassuming attitude when she first started her journey… and Dawn quickly learned the hard way how that attitude would get her nowhere.

For every time Ash said a stupid thing, Paul was all the more determined to punish this so-called rival of his. "Ursaring, Slash!"

Like a bottle rocket, Buizel blasted off within its watery encasing. Both Paul and Ursaring watched and waited carefully, with the latter pulling its arm back again while its claws lengthened considerably within a glowing aura. Buizel made a direct hit against Ursaring's chest, slowly forcing its much larger opponent back, though Ursaring easily managed to stay solidly on its two feet. Buizel was too involved in its attack and Ash was too focused on pushing that mammoth of a Pokémon off its feet to realize Ursaring was _still_ charging its attack. Paul's fists tightened ever-so slightly as the perfect time to attack struck him and his Pokémon simultaneously. Ursaring glared down at the Sea Weasel Pokémon pushing against it with all its might, only to be fiercely cut and thrown back by a direct hit from Slash.

Dawn winced as she watched Buizel being send flying back; its Aqua Jet being forcibly canceled in the process. "Oh no…! That had to hurt…"

"Mm," Brock solemnly mumbled. "Ursaring's attacks are a lot more powerful after using Bulk up first."

Buizel was thrown back hard enough to be sent tumbling its way back towards Ash on the ground before flopping over on its belly. That "fairly good shape" Ash thought Buizel to be in was no longer the case, but to the Sea Weasel Pokémon's credit, it was still able battle… despite being critically injured.

"Focus Blast!" Paul was heard calling for, as he obviously wasn't giving Ash or his Pokémon an inch of breathing room between these attacks. Paul wasn't letting Ash off that easy after his stupidity quota for the day had been exceeded. The growling Ursaring formed a small sphere of devastating concentrated energy; even if this took a bit of time to prepare, Buizel wasn't exactly in prime condition to dodge like it usually was. Even after Focus Blast was lobbed by Ursaring, Buizel was just then finally getting to its feet from the previous attack.

Ash wasn't going to let it end like this. "Quick, Buizel! Use Aqua Jet!"

Situations like these were pretty common for Ash, be it a Pokémon battle or going against the forces of evil. This was why he put speedy Pokémon in such high regard – someone like Grotle wouldn't have been able to do anything in this short frame of time except take the attack and faint. But Buizel, banged up though it was, still had enough energy to retain its speediness. Paul blinked as he witnessed Buizel doing something odd, and yet strongly familiar. Buizel didn't take off in Aqua Jet like it had done several times already, but instead spun itself on the ground in an odd breakdancing-esque style much like Pikachu had done earlier with Thunderbolt. Instead of a vortex of lightning, though, Buizel formed a tall, enduring waterspout.

Focus Blast collided into this strange rendition of Aqua Jet, but Ursaring's attack couldn't overpower the waterspout. Instead of merely dispersing the attack like Pikachu did with Smog, the results were much more effective with Buizel: Focus Blast's impact was absorbed, and then the energy itself shattered from its compacted spherical shape. The remains of Focus Blast were reflected by the waterspout, leaving only one place for these small but numerous shots of energy to go: back to the Pokémon who sent it in the first place. Consequently, Ursaring was pelted by its own attack, which dealt notable damage due to Ursaring's status as a Normal-type. It was painful enough for Ursaring to howl in pain as it tried to hold up its arms to shield itself from the multiple blows – it was probably beneficial for Ursaring to take the attack this way opposed to its normal, concentrated form.

Paul would have been angry over this, but truthfully it was twists like this that kept the battle interesting for _him_. Not to mention he was learning some valuable things about Ash's battling style by enduring this; the similarity in Buizel and Pikachu's deviations from their usual moves weren't lost on him, and Ash inadvertently made it even easier for Paul by confirming it through his bragging.

"So tell me, Paul, how'd you like a taste of our little Counter Shield?" Ash called out to him, both sounding and looking smug. "Pikachu's not the only one who can use it."

Paul had overheard the spectators discussing something by that name just a little while ago when Pikachu did this, so it was a certainty that this was the name of the method Ash had just used twice on him: Counter Shield. Being given two opportunities to study this original technique was more than enough for Paul to learn when to anticipate it, be it later in this battle (but would Ash be dumb enough to use it thrice in one battle against him?) or in the future… namely the Sinnoh League. Ash clearly taking pride in Counter Shield was simply a sign for Paul to take advantage of that whenever the time came. For Ash's taunt, though, Paul wasn't giving that rival the satisfaction of knowing he'd been taken off-guard.

When Ash realized he wouldn't be getting more than a neutral "hmph" out of Paul, he set his mind back on business. "Buizel, Sonic Boom!"

Buizel quickly charged up the energy in its tail, and with a twirl, it released the waves of energy right at its target. Paul was quick to counter it. "Ursaring, Hammer Arm!"

This time, Paul's tone indicated that this attack be focused on the Pokémon instead of the attack. So Ursaring charged across the battlefield and through the Sonic Boom barrage. To Ash's surprise, Ursaring seemed completely unfazed by the impact as it took no toll whatsoever on Ursaring's power or speed. The Hibernation Pokémon then leaped up towards the unsuspecting Buizel, landing a clothesline punch on its target before its feet touched the ground. At such a close range, the hit was strong enough to make Buizel leave a steep imprint of its body shape on the ground, where it wearily lied as a result of a close-range Hammer Arm blow.

Seeing Buizel effectively flattened on the ground was reason enough for Ash to panic. He took out Buizel's Pokémon to order a hasty retreat. "Buizel, return…!"

Before Ash could utilize the Pokéball's recall device, however, he saw Buizel stand right back up as if that Hammer Arm attack did nothing to it. The Sea Weasel Pokémon was obviously faking that and was in a great deal of pain, but the last thing it wanted was to be sent back to its Pokéball _again._ Still troubled with pride issues and being one of Ash's feistiest Pokémon of the Sinnoh team, Buizel was determined to end it all here and now without prolonging things any longer. After standing back upright, it looked back to Ash, giving the shaken trainer a grin and a very bold thumbs-up gesture.

Ash smiled knowingly, pocketing away the Pokéball. "I gotcha," he understood. "Aqua Jet!"

With gusto, Buizel charged at Ursaring within its swift stream of water. Even with all the power it could still dish out, Paul knew denial when he saw it. After all, Paul spent _weeks_ being that way; all the more reason for him to put that Buizel out of its misery.

"Focus Blast!"

Ursaring formed another ball of energy and casually launched it straight at Buizel. Both the attack and the target were coming straight for it, so it was fairly obvious when and where to launch the counter. Ash prayed that Buizel would dodge, but no such luck… it turned out his own Pokémon's overconfidence turned against the trainer this time.

"Buizel…!" Ash cried out as he helplessly watched the Sea Weasel Pokémon directly hit with Focus Blast, triggering an explosion between the two colliding attacks. Unable to do or say anything about the situation now, Ash could only watch as Buizel (still within its Aqua Jet) crash-landed on the ground. The power of Aqua Jet's stream pushed the unmoving Pokémon forward a couple of feet before the water dissipated. The dust clouds kicked up from the harsh impact cleared out quickly enough to reveal Buizel completely incapacitated.

"Buizel is unable to battle and the winner is Ursaring!" Olivier announced; his official tone almost forcibly cold and professional. On the scoreboard, Buizel's portrait became a monotone silhouette just like the other Pokémon unable to battle.

Dawn looked on at the scene, notably downtrodden. "Poor Buizel," she muttered with sympathy. Since Buizel was once her Pokémon, it was understandable that she would be especially disappointed with its loss.

"Alright, Buizel! Return!" Ash called, doing his best to remain strong as his fallen comrade was sent back into its Pokéball. "Thanks, Buizel. Now you take a good rest," he gently urged, never failing to give his Pokémon credit where it was due. Ash never did like how Paul outright refused to do the same for his own, but for now, there was a bigger problem hanging over Ash's head.

Paul was now ahead of him statistically.

"Buizel was eliminated because of Ash's poor judgment," Reggie told the others.

"You're saying Ash should have had Buizel returned the time before?" Brock asked, referring to when Ash was about to do just that before Buizel decided for him what move to make.

Reggie nodded to this, leaving Dawn even more worried for how her friend would endure the rest of this battle. Now with the numbers stacking in Paul's favor in addition to other numerous advantages, even she could tell things were bound to get only worse from here.

"Now, Staraptor! I choose you…!" Ash called for his next Pokémon… while he sounded undeterred by the loss of Buizel, there was no doubt he was forcing himself to repress these feelings so that they wouldn't impede his ability to battle. For this round, Ash wanted to take every opportunity available to him for his Pokémon to attack, so he was quick to issue out the first order. "Use Aerial Ace!"

As a move that couldn't miss (barring any interference), it was usually a smart choice to start with. As Staraptor swiftly approached its target, however, Paul was intent on causing such interference. "Ursaring, counter with Hammer Arm!"

There wasn't enough time for Staraptor to dodge the counter and consequently got a stiff smack for its troubles. Luckily for Ash, Staraptor was able to recover from this hit within a matter of seconds so that it could land its own hit on the Hibernation Pokémon - directly on its face, no less.

"Focus Blast!" Paul commanded next, not the least bit affected by what just happened. Staraptor had quickly retreated back into the air after landing its hit on Ursaring and was still in the midst of doing this after Ursaring had flung upwards a concentrated, high-powered attack coming right for it. Though Staraptor possessed a very respectable top speed, it was unable out-fly the velocity rate of the ball of energy that had Ursaring's sheer physical strength to credit its maintained high rate of speed. Focus Blast collided with Staraptor, and though it was a hard hit to take, it quickly recovered enough to maintain its position in the air. That didn't make Ash any less frustrated, however, as at this point Ash had run fresh out of clever strategies and could only rely on his own instincts from this point on.

"Close Combat…!" he yelled, knowing this was sure to do _something_ due to being a Fighting-type attack.

"Ursaring, use Slash!" Paul had no intention of letting Ash believe any longer that he had even an ounce of control in this battle. Both Pokémon charged at each other with their full-powered attacks with Ursaring winning out in the power clash. Staraptor was knocked back like a ragdoll by Ursaring's Slash – knowing this Pokémon had nothing left to impress him with, Paul decided to take the initiative to end this pointless match. "Hammer Arm; let's go!"

Using both arms this time to execute the attack, Ursaring perfectly timed how long to charge the attack and when to strike. With Ash dumbstruck in the presence of such raw – yet controlled – power, he could only watch as Staraptor was brutally clubbed into the ground.

"Staraptor, no…!" Ash _hated_ feeling so helpless, but in times like these his shouts of encouragement were all he really had to offer for his team. Sometimes, that would be enough. This time, however… it just wasn't Ash's lucky day.

More dust was kicked up as a result of the last attack; Ursaring was an absolute beast and its brutality displayed here reminded Ash just how dangerous this Pokémon was before Paul captured it. That was but a fleeting thought on the young trainer's mind; he squinted to see past the dust before it cleared out. Just as before, Ursaring had thrown Staraptor so forcefully that the impact left an imprint of the victim's shape on the ground. There was no questioning it – Staraptor was done.

"Staraptor is unable to battle and the winner is Ursaring!"

"Staraptor, return!" Ash recalled yet another fallen friend back to its Pokéball. "Thanks a lot, Staraptor; get some rest." It was getting increasingly difficult for Ash to keep that uplifting spirit of his going. Hearing the sound of Ursaring being returned to its Pokéball thankfully snapped Ash out of what would have been a downward spiral of worrying and self-loathing… yes, dense though Ash may be, he was far from oblivious of his blunders here.

"Electabuzz, stand by for battle!" Paul commanded, casually sending out his very effective Pokémon providing that value defense for the team.

Ash frowned as he took a moment to think this over; Electabuzz had been a very tricky opponent in this match, so he had to carefully consider his remaining options. "Okay, if it's Electabuzz, then Chimchar – I choose you!"

While Chimchar was finally sent out, unveiling the obvious final Pokémon on Ash's side, Team Rocket became much more cheerful with their work while they updated the scoreboard. Having seen the abuse Chimchar endured while it was still Paul's Pokémon and Meowth especially having a heart-to-heart with this Pokémon in the past endeared the morally ambiguous trio to the Chimp Pokémon.

"Yeah, Chimmy's at da' plate!" Meowth sang out.

"Chimchar will be great!" James concurred.

"A fiery Chimchar challenge; I can hardly wait!" Jessie gushed.

The scoreboard was changed as all three confirmed it: "Information update!" But this grueling work was wearing the trio down at this point, as all three heaved out a sigh once their part of the job was done.

Just the sight of its former trainer did much to fuel Chimchar's resolve; it raised a fist at Paul, barking out at him… but Paul knew this reunion was inevitable. They hadn't seen each other since before Paul's life started spiraling out of control. Now that Paul had hit rock bottom, he made sure to fortify his emotional resolve against this particular Pokémon. He knew it was Ash's intention to defeat him with Chimchar and consequently prove him wrong for all the negative things he'd said to Chimchar in the past. Paul had long since deemed Chimchar a worthless waste of his time… and even though he'd lost a considerable amount of his self-esteem over a short period of time, Paul's stance on Chimchar's potential remained unchanged. It would be foolish to let his guard down now, though. Paul would approach Chimchar in battle with caution, just as he did with the rest of Ash's Pokémon. Nothing would change here.

"Here we go!" Ash hollered; his determination restored. "Flamethrower!"

Chimchar fired streams of flames from its mouth that quickly approached the Electric Pokémon, but Paul knew exactly what to do once more. "Protect!"

The barrier of light easily negated Chimchar's attack, and Paul was quick to take initiative. "Now, Light Screen!"

"Huh? Another defensive move?" Dawn wondered out loud. She had noticed throughout the battle so far that Electabuzz had done very little on the offensive front – each time it was called out, it was to reinforce Light Screen. The rookie Coordinator could see that much, but the agitated Ash wasn't as quick to catch on. He gaped as Paul immediately recalled Electabuzz after Light Screen was restored.

"_Another_ switcharoo!" James exclaimed, exasperated as he and his companions updated the scoreboard.

"D'ese buttons are killin' me!" Meowth complained.

As Jessie tiredly muttered "I need a finger massage…", the image of Electabuzz grayed out back to inactive status.

"Whoa, Electabuzz first used Protect, and then Light Screen on top of that," Brock noted. "Paul's been consistent about maintaining a strong defense with Electabuzz…"

"Right," Reggie agreed. "I'm certain Paul's strategy all along was to first use Protect to cover Electabuzz and then Light Screen to cover his next Pokémon." After all, Reggie was the one who taught him that trick.

"Torterra, stand by for battle!" For whatever reason, Paul saw it appropriate to send out his starter next. Though Torterra was talented in _looking_ just as fresh and fierce as it was in the beginning, the truth was that Torterra wasn't in the best of shape. Normally, Paul would have hesitated to send Torterra in again – especially against an opponent that has the type advantage – but Torterra had its ways to level out the playing field. Over the past ten days, Paul learned to shove aside his pride and openly show his first Pokémon how much he truly cared. Paul fully trusted Torterra now, and he'd show it with a new technique Torterra mastered with its trainer's help.

Since Ash had no idea what happened to Paul during that time, he couldn't hazard a guess as to why his rival chose Torterra at all. "Paul knows we have the advantage, but he's _still_ usin' Torterra," he acknowledged. Instead of taking the time to ponder _why_, Ash chose to press on. "'Kay. Use Flame Wheel!"

While Chimchar picked up speed, shifting into its Flame Wheel approach and made a beeline for its very large target, Paul found this the right moment to show Ash just why Torterra was here. "Stone Edge, now!"

"Dodge it!" Ash called, mentally scolding himself for forgetting that Torterra knew a Rock-type move that had great potential for damaging Chimchar. Thankfully, Chimchar had more than enough speed to evade Torterra's attacks with ease and did so by veering out of the path of the attack, continuing its pursuit.

Now was the time to unveil the nasty surprise. "Change up!"

No one but Reggie knew what this phrase meant, as it wasn't the name of any attack. However, Stone Edge was still active, even if it was missing the target by a mile. The crowd gasped as they witnessed the barrage of rocks suddenly curve around and _change direction_, now coming at Chimchar from behind.

"It changed direction?" Dawn cried out; Ash was at a loss for words as he watched Torterra control the flow of its attack.

"The ability to control Stone Edge is just incredible!" Brock said in sheer awe; never in all his years of traveling with Ash had he seen nor imagined something like this… or even believe it was possible.

Reggie, the only calm one of the spectators, simply nodded his head. "This technique is a difficult one to master and it's not a trick many trainers think is possible. It took days for Paul to master it, and he even managed to put his own unique touch to it."

"I can see how it'd be hard to learn," Dawn understood as she studied the motion of the rocks; specifically the way they curved in their directional shift. "It almost looks like how a move might get messed up if it got interfered with Psychic or something."

"Funny you should mention that," Reggie said with a smile. "Paul told me that was his main source of inspiration… an old friend showed him the versatility of Psychic and he decided to emulate its effects without actually utilizing the move."

Both Dawn and Brock looked to Reggie; this was news to them.

"An old friend, you said?" Brock asked the Pokémon Breeder for clarification's sake.

"That's right," Reggie said, closing his eyes as he smiled. He wouldn't say any more than that; though Paul still had mixed feelings and didn't want other people knowing of his association with a certain intellectual trainer, Reggie was happy to see the signs.

Paul was missing Conway's company.

"I didn't think Paul had any friends," Dawn murmured, trying to imagine what sort of person would want to be in Paul's company… and even more, Paul willing to _accept_ that.

Attentions were diverted back to the battle as Stone Edge eventually caught up with Chimchar and collided with it, causing a good deal of damage to the Fire-type. Skidding across the ground while reeling from the impact, Chimchar stopped itself, finding Torterra standing there close by. The two former teammates had a brief staring contest before Ash called for the next attack.

"Flamethrower, go!" Ash would soon regret that decision, as the flames did make contact with Torterra, but the glowing box of light appearing around Torterra to buffer the attack reminded Ash that Light Screen was still in play. Even with a type advantage, Torterra would be hard to damage unless Ash stuck with physical attacks only. "Oh, man!"

Paul once again trapped Ash in an unfavorable situation.

"Light Screen halved the damage from that Flamethrower," Brock acknowledged. "Chimchar has an advantage as a Fire-type, but this is getting difficult now."

"On top of that, there's the danger of getting hit with Stone Edge if Chimchar gets too close, leaving both Ash _and_ Chimchar with precious few options," Reggie reminded; he was much quicker to access the situations here than anyone else. Regaining the power he once had years ago and now excelling beyond that, Reggie's instincts as a trainer were sharper than ever.

Chimchar and Torterra had another stare-off as Ash dealt with the mental debate that was giving him a headache. Seeing that Paul wasn't making a move proved that he was the one in control of this match. Whatever Chimchar threw at Torterra, the Continent Pokémon would counter at Chimchar's expense. Still lamenting the rash decisions he made that cost him Buizel and Grotle, Ash decided to play it safe for Chimchar. "Chimchar, return for now!"

As Chimchar was recalled, Jessie leaned out from her position to protest. "HEY! Make up your mind!"

"The challenge of manual labor," James said loathingly as he updated the scoreboard. "We're on!"

"Gliscor, take over!" Ash called, unleashing his Gliscor back on the field. Ash was sick and tired of Paul one-upping him in every match, and his impatience was showing as he talked to himself about how he would handle this. "Of course, I know Torterra's protected by Light Screen, but Torterra also took a lot of damage." His big, smug smile was visible to Paul, who continued to keep himself reserved as he watched Ash make a fool of himself.

"I'll finish it off in one shot!" Ash boasted, looking to his Gliscor. "X-Scissor!"

Once again, Paul calmly waited for just the right moment, when Gliscor zoomed in at a range that left the Fang Scorp Pokémon vulnerable to a counterattack. He and Torterra were on the same mental wavelength, so when Paul commanded, "Frenzy Plant!", Torterra already knew exactly what to do.

Torterra glowed, summoning the gargantuan thorn-adorned roots from the ground that collectively aimed in one direction instead of wildly spreading around in random directions. The roots of Frenzy Plant effortlessly captured Gliscor in midair – leaving Gliscor helpless – as soon afterwards the roots tossed Gliscor even higher into the air.

But since Gliscor was not in control and couldn't fly its way out of this, the mighty toss from the strongest Grass-type attack sent it flying back much higher than Gliscor ever flew. Even Ash and Pikachu's cries for Gliscor to persevere weren't enough. With one ground-shaking collision, Gliscor's condition was immediately identifiable.

"Gliscor is unable to battle! The winner is Torterra!"

After Olivier's announcement, the scoreboard updated again to confirm Gliscor had been eliminated.

"Gliscor, return now!" Ash held back his feelings of dread long enough to thank his Gliscor. "Now you get a good rest. Thanks…" He didn't even want to look at the scoreboard, but Ash couldn't help but gaze at Torterra, still standing firmly as it had been since the beginning of the battle. "Torterra was Paul's first Pokémon," Ash quietly recalled to himself. "_Man_, Torterra is strong… and it doesn't even have to _move_ to do what Paul needs it to do. How does he do that?" Ash, the one who preferred fast-paced offensive Pokémon and strategies couldn't comprehend how an opponent could be so strong and efficient when it remained stationary the entire time.

Ash's thoughts were interrupted by Pikachu, who obviously wanted to return to the battlefield and fight for Ash's honor.

"That's great, Pikachu," Ash commended. "But Electric-type moves won't work." For all of his poor performances and rash decisions, Ash at least hadn't forgotten the basics… such as Torterra's partial Ground-type making it immune to Pikachu's most powerful attacks.

This, however, did not deter Pikachu, as it sounded very insistent with its "Pikapika!" remark.

Unsurprisingly, Ash ultimately caved in to his Pokémon's desires without considering the consequences. He put his energetic smile back on to encourage his partner. "Okay, then everything's on your speed and your Iron Tail!"

Pikachu eagerly took its place on the field, shouting its name with pride as it crouched down into its attacking position. Ash couldn't help but be intrigued with this matchup: Starter versus Starter. Even if Torterra had a type advantage, Pikachu's speed and agility would prove to make the Mouse Pokémon a difficult target to hit.

"I'm countin' on ya!" Ash cheered, more and more looking forward to this unique battle of clashing styles between each trainer's first Pokémon. Pikachu was equally enthused, but was taken aback in shock when Paul suddenly returned Torterra back to its Pokéball.

Ash's eagerness was shot down brutally as he couldn't comprehend a single thing Paul was doing. "What the? Switchin' _again?_"

Deep down, Paul did feel interested in the prospect of Starter versus Starter, especially since he had enough strategies in mind to take Pikachu down despite its superior speed. However, this entire battle was testing Paul's resolve; whether or not he could maintain his professional, neutral attitude for the duration of the battle. He was determined to keep his emotions suppressed, just as his father did, and win this battle. It was time to get rid of Pikachu, he decided. He wanted to take it out in the most brutal manner possible, mirroring the hatred he felt for Ash. There was only one Pokémon on this current team that matched his desire for ruthless, unforgiving destruction…

"Ursaring, stand by for battle!"

Team Rocket angrily got to work for the umpteenth time to update the scoreboard. While Jessie and Meowth muttered inaudible curses, James was heard wailing, "Fickle-minded twerps are by far the worst twerps of all…!"

But Paul was far from fickle-minded; he was merely being efficient with his work. He had no interest in toying around. Ash glared at Paul's Pokémon, trying to decipher his rival's battling style. He vaguely remembered the importance of unique battling styles when Brandon was among them ten days ago… how Reggie lacked a unique battling style, which consequently made Paul obsessed with making his own style of battling. What Brandon said was taken to heart by Paul; that much was obvious to Ash now. This change in Paul's demeanor was linked to what happened to him that day… and now Paul was bringing nothing but his best effort for this battle. Ash realized he'd been pretty careless so far and not giving Paul the battle he wanted. But with Pikachu back in play, Ash was self-assured that he would truly impress Paul and leave an impact – something stronger than the fleeting moment of awe when Ash revealed his Counter Shield technique.

Pikachu looked questioningly to its partner, who had been quiet far too long without giving a command. "Pikapi?"

Ash snapped out of it, looking to Pikachu… he was more determined now than ever. "Mm, this is _mine_," he proclaimed. "Pikachu, Quick Attack!"

"Use Hammer Arm!" Paul knew Pikachu would land the hit first – that's how Quick Attack worked, after all – but afterwards there was only a small window of opportunity for Pikachu to escape the range of Ursaring's clutches. Pikachu landed a direct hit on Ursaring's midsection; just as Paul expected. The strong and sturdy Ursaring took Quick Attack and stood its ground, not even being pushed back by the force of Pikachu's attack. With ease, Ursaring quickly charged up energy within its fit and jabbed Pikachu _hard_ in the gut.

Pikachu felt as if its eyes nearly popped out when it felt the impact. Ursaring swatted Pikachu away like a fly, causing Dawn and Piplup to cry out for it. Being knocked back so far into the air allowed Pikachu to recover in time, much to Ash's relief.

"Yes! Good one!" Ash called in recognition of Pikachu's ability to recover after taking such a painful critical hit. "Now use Iron Tail!"

As Pikachu dived down for Ursaring, twirling and charging its tail, Paul was not concerned. He'd seen this move executed so many times that he figured there'd be no problem in countering it. "Quick, Focus Blast!"

Ursaring attempted to gather the energy necessary for the attack, but suddenly it flinched back, seemingly in pain. Electricity sparks surged throughout the Hibernation Pokémon's body.

"What the?" Paul lost his composure for a brief moment. The last thing he wanted was to lose control of this battle; even the slightest mistake could turn the whole battle around for all he knew. Though calm and self-assured on the outside, Paul was a nervous, desperate boy utterly deprived of self-esteem. With things mostly going his way in the battle, it was easier to keep up the front, but if Ash were to win…

… No, Paul wouldn't let that happen. He _couldn't_ let that happen. After all the losses he suffered, all the humiliation that came with it, and the clock of his life ticking down ever-so closer to his untimely demise…

But then, Paul found his happy place again. Shaking aside his worries and doubts, he'd almost forgotten his alternative plan with Ursaring – something that spelled doom for Ash's team if it went into effect.

"Is that what I think…?" Dawn asked as she watched, her eyes widened with amazement.

"Right; that's Pikachu's Static ability," Brock confirmed.

"Static can cause your opponent to be paralyzed when using a move that makes direct physical contact," Reggie said, deciding to expand on Brock's answer. "So now it looks like Pikachu's got the upper-hand. Paralysis can really slow the victim down as well, and Ursaring is already a lot slower than Pikachu even without the paralysis. On the other hand… hm…"

Brock and Dawn looked to Reggie again, expecting him to continue, but both were soon focused back on the battle when they heard a loud and brutal impact; Pikachu landed its Iron Tail attack directly on top of Ursaring's head, forcing the giant Pokémon to slump down from the sheer force of Pikachu's tail. This time, Pikachu knew better to get as far away from Ursaring as possible after landing the attack and successfully made its way to the field, bouncing back gracefully. Dawn and Brock looked relieved to see this, but went into shock when Pikachu suddenly cried out in pain. The cause was the same as before: spontaneous flames consuming Pikachu's body, burning it further and sapping its health away.

"Pikachu still has the Burn effect from Flame Body!" Dawn realized.

"That's right; it won't be going away anytime soon," Brock told her. "Not until Pikachu gets taken care of after this battle…"

Reggie's expressions hardened again. "Yeah, and there's the other downside to being burned… it doesn't just do damage to Pikachu at minute intervals." He looked to Dawn. "Remember what Brock said about it earlier?"

"Y-yeah, I think so," Dawn said, sounding uneasy. "Pikachu can't fight with its full power under the Burn effect. So even if Pikachu's attacks are hitting Ursaring, it's not doing as much damage as it looks."

"Precisely," Reggie affirmed. "And it's about to get worse from here, I think…"

Before Dawn could ask what Reggie meant by that, Ursaring managed to attract everyone's attention by growling in a low, almost _sinister_ manner. While still afflicted with paralysis, Ursaring's eyes glowed a shining, menacing red color.

While this was a frightening image to behold, Paul merely smirked at the sight. "Finally," he said, pleased to have his trump card activated.

Ash was speechless and overcome with shock. The other spectators were not much better off, collectively jaw-dropping at what was happening.

Except for Reggie. "Look out," he warned.

The weary Pikachu was able to straighten itself out after being burned again, only to see the towering, terrifying monster standing a mere few feet away. Now its whole body was consumed with a red aura, and the electric sparks from its paralysis only made Ursaring even more intimidating. It looked like it was about to fly into a rage, and Paul was more than willing to grant his Pokémon that privilege.

"Now, Hammer Arm!"

Now more frightening than ever, Ursaring raised both arms, charged with energy and ready to flatten Pikachu like a pancake.

Ash snapped out of the shock and realized he needed Pikachu to make some distance and cancel out that attack. "It's comin'! Thunderbolt - go!" It was here that Ash threw strategy out the proverbial window; his instincts took over as his worry for Pikachu intensified.

Pikachu charged and fired another ground-ripping Thunderbolt, making a direct hit on Ursaring. Pikachu kept the charge up, figuring if it could prevent Ursaring from moving that it could take a chance on staying in place as Ursaring was forced to endure a continuous zap of electricity that was none too pleasant for the Hibernation Pokémon to bear.

What no one but Paul (and perhaps Reggie) expected was that Ursaring was _still_ able to charge _and_ execute its own attack while still being thrashed with the ongoing Thunderbolt. With Pikachu having to stand in place to keep its own attack going, it was a complete and total sitting Psyduck.

"Where's that power comin' from?" Ash cried out, completely at a loss for what was going on.

"It hasn't even used Bulk Up…!" Dawn pointed out, equally confused. "This isn't making any sense!"

Ursaring put both arms together, delivering a powerful whack at Pikachu from the side. There was definitely an unusual amount of power coming from the impact of this attack, as Pikachu was sent flying – far too fast for it to recover in midair this time – straight out of the battlefield and towards Lake Acuity itself. Pikachu ultimately landed in the shallow end of the lake as Ash screamed "_Pikachu…!_" at the top of his lungs. Electric sparks burst from the water after Pikachu was submerged, but they quickly shorted out.

Not even wanting to wait to see if Pikachu could make it out on its own, Ash dashed right off the battlefield and into the lake, nervously approaching the area where Pikachu landed as he slowly waded through the water. Dawn was worried enough to actually stand up from her seat, but she didn't move an inch after that. She simply looked on at Ash trying to recover his first Pokémon, worried sick that this fight finally went too far. Ursaring raging almost uncontrollably in the background didn't make things any less tense, either.

"Pikachu…" Dawn whispered, hoping her fears wouldn't become reality.

"Ursaring's Guts ability has been activated," Brock realized. "Its attack stat is boosted when affected by things like paralysis, poison, and other status effects as well."

"I'll bet you Paul was just _waiting_ for that ability to get activated all along," Reggie assumed (correctly), remembering the smirk on Paul's face the very moment Ursaring's Guts ability was triggered.

Paul was quite satisfied with how things turned out. Upon hearing bubbles of air emerge from the lake, he looked over to see the water mildly rippling right in front of Ash. Pikachu finally emerged, and Paul was admittedly impressed that Pikachu still had enough energy left to come up on its own. Immensely relieved, Ash approached Pikachu and kneeled down to tend to its needs… but Paul knew that even if Pikachu was capable of recovering enough to not drown in the lake it was thrown into, there was no way Pikachu would be able to put up a fight after so many devastating blows from his Ursaring.

"Pikachu, are you alright…?" Ash cautiously asked his first Pokémon. Though Pikachu gave its trainer a reassuring smile in response, it was short-lived. Its final bit of energy diminished, leaving Pikachu to fall face-first back into the water – almost. Ash was there to catch Pikachu; overcome with grief, Ash held Pikachu close to him as gently as possible.

From a distance, Ash could hear the official statement from Olivier. "Pikachu is unable to battle! The winner is Ursaring!"

"No way," Jessie quietly uttered in dismay. The Pikachu who had sent her and her friends blasting off so many times that she lost count years ago had been felled.

"Even Pikachu got pummeled," Meowth lamented, still finding it hard to believe.

"Ursaring's got brute to burn," James noted. "I never thought I would see it come to this…"

Ash somberly returned to the battlefield, cradling Pikachu in his arms and not minding at all the fact that his jeans were drenched. "Thanks, Pikachu. You battled really hard," he quietly commended his companion, who regained consciousness fairly quickly, though it was still in no condition to battle now. Ash just smiled reassuringly at Pikachu's regretful "Pikapika…" that made it obvious even to Ash that Pikachu wished it could have done more. Being the most powerful Pokémon on Ash's team meant that Pikachu felt a greater deal of responsibility to uphold. It felt the need to meet and/or exceed Ash's expectations every time (even if Ash was normally a very lenient trainer) and set an example for Ash's other Pokémon, no matter what region they were in.

This wasn't a trait unique to Pikachu; Paul's Torterra was the exact same way, though Torterra didn't have the luxury of getting praised for every single thing it did. Though Paul had always cared for Torterra, he forced himself to suppress those feelings as much as he could to prevent his first Pokémon from getting any special treatment. The differences in these training methods could be traced back to the different ways Ash and Paul were raised in their families. Paul was the second child, thus his entire childhood centered on overcoming his big brother and his father encouraged both his behavior and his point of view. Not only that, but Paul and Reggie's parents inadvertently played favorites often; this lead to Reggie being closer to his mother while Paul was closer to his father. Special treatment from one end of the family resulted in conflicts from the other side. Though Paul barely knew his mother, he could tell from Reggie's motivations that the two were very close before her death.

Paul understood that it was normal to not remember his mother well since he was only five when she died. However, he did believe that he might have remembered her better if she'd spent more time with him. After all, Reggie remembered both of his parents very well, and though he did love Brandon for better or worse, Paul could tell the two weren't close. Reggie cared more about carrying on his mother's dreams as a breeder than he ever did for succeeding Brandon's much more prestigious role in life.

Favoritism was a bit of a problem for Paul's family life. Consequently, when Paul went on to train Pokémon, he had a strict (if slightly distorted) moral code he followed and every Pokémon he captured adhered to it. No one was even allowed to pursue any sort of romantic interest with any other Pokémon, as Paul feared it may result in his Pokémon breeding and siring their own children. Paul was vehemently against the idea of forcing his Pokémon to abandon their children, so he would not hesitate to automatically release any Pokémon of his if this were to happen… not only out of anger for disrespecting him as a trainer, but because Paul would insist that the Pokémon stay behind and raise their young, rather than abandoning them by continuing along Paul's journey.

The way Ash grew up couldn't be more different. He was an only child, and though he rarely saw (and thus barely knew) his father, his mother more than made up for his absence. Ash was smothered with love and enjoyed a much more relaxed, carefree childhood where his only opposition was his neighbor, Gary Oak… but they were also best friends, so there was never any true animosity between them. Being raised to enjoy life and make the best of every day, Ash's pure-hearted nature spread to his Pokémon, even if they weren't naturally as friendly as Ash himself. For the most part, Ash was good about giving all his Pokémon the attention and love they deserved and wasn't as rigid as Paul was about favoritism. He simply couldn't pretend he wasn't closest to his Pikachu, and yet his Pokémon all flourished in their own unique ways despite that.

Normally, Ash's training methods proved effective when it came time to battle. Today, however, was the exception. It wasn't Ash's philosophy that was the problem here, though… it was Ash himself, who failed to apply Brandon's words of wisdom to his training and leadership skills. And admittedly, having defeated Paul in a PokéRinger match _and_ seeing him fail miserably against Brandon (whom Ash had already defeated) did make Ash just a bit too comfortable coming into this battle. He meant to take it seriously, as Ash did with any battle against Paul. But Ash failed to assert his authority when Pokémon he _knew_ weren't strong enough to continue battling convinced him otherwise with flimsy optimism, and he second-guessed himself during critical moments of the battle. In situations where Paul clearly had a plan in motion and his Pokémon were becoming greater threats, Ash simply brushed them off and assumed he was capable of outsmarting Paul just by believing in himself.

"You sit back and watch; I'll nail it this time." Ash promised. Though he sounded quite sure of himself, one glance at the scoreboard sent Ash right back into a state of fear, uncertainty, and frustration.

Thanks to Ursaring's rampaging, Ash was down to only one usable Pokémon left: Chimchar. Paul still had _five_ of his six Pokémon able to battle. The previous few losses Ash had went by so quickly that he had lost track, completely unaware of the metaphorical hole he just dug himself into. Even his unyielding optimism couldn't ignore the high improbability of beating five Pokémon with just one. He tried desperately to find a bright side, and surprisingly he found one.

"Paul's Pokémon have all taken damage," he recalled, especially remembering the immeasurable amounts of punishment Torterra took. "It's not over yet. We can still do this!" Ash subconsciously geared his mindset towards that dim flicker of hope as he held out his last Pokéball. "It's up to you, Chimchar." He sent out his final Pokémon accordingly.

Pikachu wanted to feel that same optimism, but it simply couldn't ignore the reality of this situation. The group of spectators were just as cynical about the idea of Ash winning this battle.

"It's going to be really tough to beat all five of Paul's Pokémon with just Chimchar," Brock said with a heavy heart.

"It is a lot like that battle from ten days ago," Dawn admitted. "I wanna say I still think he can do it, but… from what you guys have said, it sounds like he's made way too many mistakes to recover enough to actually pull off a miracle."

Reggie nodded. "You're right; this won't last for much longer. If Chimchar was fresh, I might be more inclined to believe there's still hope for Ash here. But even though all five of Paul's Pokémon have taken damage, Chimchar's the same way. I think we're nearing the end…"

"Chimchar, let's show 'em how powerful you can be!" Ash cheered for his Pokémon, adamant about maintaining a positive attitude. "Use Flame Wheel!"

For once, it was a good time to be Paul. The fact that the odds were stacked highly in his favor during the homestretch of this full battle wasn't lost on him, but he promised himself to keep his emotions in check at least until this battle ended. For all the times he'd lost, he still wasn't going to take any chances no matter how good this looked for him; Paul had been extremely paranoid from the start and he saw no reason to let down his guard now. "Ursaring, use Slash!"

Thanks to the strength boost from Guts, Ursaring had no problem swatting Chimchar away like a fly. Painful as it was, Chimchar managed to retain its attack form even while reeling from the attack.

Ash decided to change things up a bit. "Chimchar, Flamethrower!"

Already with a lot of fire charged up from Flame Wheel that was still available for Chimchar to use, it quickly shifted out of the Flame Wheel and used the extra fire to make its Flamethrower execution even more powerful than usual. Ursaring was a big target, so Paul rarely tried to get the Hibernation Pokémon to dodge anything. It took the brunt of the attack; the extra power helped make this hit critical.

"Now use Dig…!" Ash shouted, not wanting Paul to get a word in edgewise. In a way, Ash was pretty paranoid as well.

Chimchar burrowed itself underground. Paul had no way of telling where Chimchar was, but he trusted that Ursaring would know since it was closer to the source of the movements of Chimchar burrowing underground. "Use Hammer Arm on the ground!"

Ursaring indeed could feel exactly where Chimchar was. It took its time to charge both arms with the attack, but taking time proved to be a mistake as Chimchar burst from the ground right where Ursaring expected it to be and charged into its much larger foe.

"Keep it up!" Ash was getting eager. If he could take out Ursaring, that would take a _lot_ of weight off his shoulders. "Now use Flamethrower!"

With another direct hit, the force was enough to push Ursaring back a considerable distance. It had taken a great deal of damage since before Chimchar was sent out, but the species was meant for this defensive style. But even for a bulky Pokémon, eventually it would reach a point where it simply couldn't take another hit just like any other, and Ursaring had hit its limit. The fact that it could be pushed back when previous Pokémon had great difficulty pushing it back more than a few inches was evident to Paul that Ursaring was no longer useful to him for this battle. But even as he watched his Pokémon be overcome by Chimchar's attack and consequently was knocked over on its back, Paul couldn't bring himself to be harsh for this loss. Ursaring had been the most useful member of his team here, literally taking out half of Ash's team within the blink of an eye.

Dust clouds were kicked up upon Ursaring's impact with the ground, but Paul already knew there was no point in waiting for Ursaring to get up. He heard Olivier shout "Ursaring is unable to battle! The winner is Chimchar!" as the dust cleared and the sound of the scoreboard being updated to reflect the elimination.

Ash was utterly _thrilled_ to hear the referee's words. "Chimchar, you were awesome!" he congratulated, riding out the afterglow of victory as Chimchar literally jumped for joy several times, having overcome a former teammate whom Paul often used to attempt to bring out Chimchar's Blaze power… or in other words, relentlessly abuse it. Paul found this celebrating annoying at best, but he decided not to protest it. In a way it was more fulfilling to see Ash make a big deal over a decidedly minor victory. Sure, Ash took down one of his most powerful Pokémon, but only after said Pokémon wiped out half of Ash's team. Paul knew soon enough Ash would realize just how pointless his cheers of victory were.

It wasn't just Ash who was celebrating. The hard-working trio of ambiguous morality were moved to tears by Chimchar's performance.

"Wow, our Chimmy's a champ!" Meowth said with genuine adoration for the Chimp Pokémon.

"That Pokémon's second to none!" James proclaimed.

"It's that kind of inspiration that gives hard work a good name!" Jessie said with pride. No doubt all three were riding on Chimchar to win the whole competition, however improbable it was.

Paul recalled the defeated Ursaring back into its Pokéball. Once again, he showed absolutely no emotion for this loss. Ash meanwhile heaved out a sigh of relief; getting Ursaring out of the picture definitely got him to relax, but when he saw his rival completely unaffected by the loss, Ash straightened himself out and forcibly brought himself back to the reality of his situation. It was time to keep moving, and to keep a step ahead of Paul however best he and Chimchar could.

"Thanks, Chimchar. You rocked," Ash told his Pokémon, who blossomed with the praise. "So, let's keep this goin'! Let's turn it around!"

Chimchar nodded in agreement, and surprisingly it was suddenly enveloped by a bright white glow. Paul, Pikachu, and Ash immediately took notice to this, while the spectators followed a mere beat later.

"Chimchar's evolving…!" Brock exclaimed, recognizing this phenomenon all too well.

All eyes were locked on Chimchar as the light gradually changed the shape of its appearance. It grew in size, but still remained relatively small. The most notable changes were the lengthy tail and the frizzy collar around its neck. The light eventually faded, and a mighty screech of "Monferno!" was heard shortly after. Brock was absolutely correct; Chimchar was no more. After many arduous months of training both from Paul and Ash, Monferno had finally come into existence.

"That's great!" Ash cried out, nearly in disbelief that such a miraculous event would happen now of all times. "You evolved into Monferno!"

Smiling at this milestone of Ash and Chimchar's lives, Dawn took out her PokéDex again to scan the recently-evolved Pokémon.

"_Monferno, the Playful Pokémon and the evolved form of Chimchar. It controls its flaming tail to keep its opponent at an ideal distance when battling."_

Seeing this certainly reminded Reggie of the time years back when his own Chimchar first evolved. "Amazing; Chimchar answered Ash's call and gained new power in order to rise to the challenge. The trust between Ash and his Pokémon is being demonstrated right before our eyes."

This was precisely why Reggie worked so hard the past ten days with Paul in order to get him to fully trust and care for all of his Pokémon. He knew all along the connections did exist in most cases; Paul's breakdown made that obvious enough. But because Paul went out of his way to suppress his feelings and distanced himself from his team, the connections between Paul and his Pokémon were tenuous at best… it really wasn't all that different from his shaky camaraderie with Conway. Now Paul understood at this moment why Reggie made him focus on creating bonds with his Pokémon. His refusal to open up to Chimchar and even for a moment treat him as a true member over the team made it impossible for Paul to bring out the true power Chimchar possessed. At first Paul couldn't have cared less; convinced that Chimchar was nothing more than a fluke and a waste of time. Then when Blaze was inadvertently brought out some months later when Ash battled Paul, he realized the potential in Chimchar was there after all. But because Paul maintained a low opinion of Ash and his training skills, he doubted Ash would be able to control this raw power and use it properly. Consequently, he figured Chimchar would never evolve due to this. Ash already seemed to be rather slow with evolving his Pokémon as far as Paul had seen, and Ash's refusal to evolve Pikachu was interpreted as letting his emotions impede his Pokémon's ability to reach their maximum potential.

But now, yet again, Paul's perception of the world and the people in his life was put into question by seeing this stronger, confident Monferno standing before him this very moment. After so many times of going into this kind of shock, Paul wished he'd be used to it by now. Just seeing Monferno hopping around, punching the air rapidly and sending an air current straight at Paul with the force of these punches (which was no doubt intentional on Monferno's end) made the struggling trainer bitter to the core. He kept himself under control; Paul would never allow himself to blow up in the middle of battle like he did to Brandon ever again. But still, for all his self-restraint, it was just too hard for Paul to hide the intense jealousy shown on his disdainful face.

"Wow, Monferno!" Ash exclaimed after seeing the wind blow straight past his rival. "You learned Mach Punch, and that's a brand new move!"

Hearing that was nothing more than twisting the knife in the wound that stabbed deeply into Paul's pride. Monferno was literally doing backflips, ecstatic for the new, stronger form it gained that its former trainer swore it would never achieve. Paul was done with silently stewing in his anger over his new development; it was time to continue the match.

"Electabuzz, stand by for battle!" Even though his face conveyed anger, that emotion was not obvious in Paul's voice. Of all his Pokémon who participated in this battle, no doubt Electabuzz was the one who spent very little time getting its hands dirty… though that was due to its unique role for the entirety of this full battle. Where Ursaring was the muscle and the one-Pokémon cleanup crew of offensive dominant force, Electabuzz was the provider of stable, long-lasting special defense (that Ash was dense enough to keep forgetting about) and in most cases had its own protection from any attack by its liberal use of Protect. Keeping Light Screen active did much to keep the rest of Paul's team in good shape, but now it was time to switch the Electric Pokémon to an offensive approach. With the emergence of Monferno, Ash's final Pokémon gained dual-type status with Fire and Fighting. Now that Paul had seen Monferno learning Mach Punch, it was natural to assume Ash would make sure to make a lot of use of it. It was a physical attack, as was Dig (another smart assumption as to what move Ash would favor in this match), meaning Light Screen would no longer be useful. But that didn't deter Paul; even if the so-called "impossible" happened, the fact remained that Monferno was all Ash had left to stay alive in this game. Even if Electabuzz couldn't pull this off, Paul still had Torterra, Honchkrow, and Magmortar to finish the job if needed. Hopefully, it wouldn't come to that… Paul was ready to wipe the smiles off his opponents' faces now and for good. If he couldn't win here, the mental turmoil would be far too much for Paul to bear; could he really muster the will to keep going after a loss like this?

Well, worrying about the repercussions of losing to Ash would have to wait; Paul needed to be _completely_ focused on decimating Ash and Monferno. Miracle occurrences like these seemed to be tailored for people like Ash. Paul had seen Ash win out from lucky breaks far too many times to disregard this one.

Out on the battlefield, Electabuzz was understandably taken aback as it hadn't expected to come face-to-face with a Monferno. As with most of Monferno's former teammates, Electabuzz was quite familiar with the Pokémon who was now its opponent; its enemy. However, their last battle had them battling alongside each other in the Hearthome Tag Battle finals – shortly after Chimchar underwent a change in ownership. After the shock wore off, Electabuzz found Monferno giving it a cocky grin, which the Electric Pokémon gladly returned in kind. This was bound to be a much more interesting challenge and Electabuzz was eager to finally take on an offensive role after so many quick switch-outs for it to reinforce Light Screen.

Seeing those two Pokémon in particular facing off was a bit of a déjà vu trip for Brock and especially Dawn, who had to battle them along with Conway way back when… if Dawn hadn't been so emotionally invested in the battle, she might have wondered what Conway was up to right now. But the truth would be far beyond her imagination, regardless…

"Chimchar wasn't really compatible with Paul's training style," Reggie suddenly said out loud, quickly getting Brock and Dawn's attention. "I could tell since he first introduced me to Chimchar… I even told him that he'd have to approach Chimchar differently if he wanted results, but naturally Paul was determined to prove to me… prove to _everybody_… that he could make it work _his_ way. And… well, I'm sure you two can tell how that turned out."

"He should've listened to you," Dawn said.

Brock shook his head. "Or maybe it just wasn't meant to be."

"Right; it's too late for the woulda-shoulda-coulda," Reggie agreed. "And sometimes, incompatibility just can't be fixed. Paul and Chimchar were simply a mismatched pair from the beginning… but with _Ash's_ training style, it's a perfect fit… simple as that."

"Now that I think back on it, I can't think of any Pokémon Paul had besides Chimchar that suffered the same way," Brock realized. "This battle here… it's like Paul and his Pokémon are perfectly synced up with no compatibility issues at all. And the previous battles we've seen…"

Dawn let out a small gasp as she took those words in. "You're… you're _right_, Brock. But how can they… _withstand_ the way Paul trains them? Not that we've really… seen that much of him training his other Pokémon… except maybe Electabuzz a couple of times."

"Paul's normally pretty good about picking the kind of Pokémon that compliment his personality," Reggie told the young Coordinator with a smile. "Chimchar was a bit of a rushed decision for personal reasons, but otherwise Paul knows a Pokémon he can respect and mesh with when he sees one." Reggie couldn't help but chuckle at the irony of what he said. "Though the funny thing is, it's really an act of Paul's subconscious. He understands the importance of bonding with his Pokémon now – don't be surprised if he denies it if you ask him – but for a long time he didn't believe in that."

"Even so, I can tell he has certain preferences," Brock pointed out. "He emphasizes on defense and chooses to wait, watch, and listen before going on the attack; a fundamental reverse of Ash's battling style. That's why he prefers Pokémon who are sturdy and can take a lot of damage before going down…"

"… Which explains why he and Chimchar didn't work out so well," Dawn clumsily postulated. "Uh, isn't that right? Because Chimchar can kinda go down quickly unless Blaze gets activated, based on what we've seen so far. What about Monferno?"

Reggie shook his head. "As Monferno, it becomes stronger than its previous form all around… but even if Paul did manage to evolve Chimchar on his own, I doubt the two would have meshed any better. And Ash needs to be careful here; Monferno can get overly eager and make careless mistakes if Ash can't keep it in line."

"You know, I'd go on a limb and say it wasn't _just_ Ash's efforts alone that invoked this evolution," Brock speculated. "The last time these two faced off, Staravia evolved to Staraptor… before that, Turtwig evolved to Grotle."

"Hm… good point," Reggie conceded. "Even separated, Chimchar's past with Paul won't just disappear like that. Evolution can happen under many circumstances, but now that you mention it, Brock, I'm sure this happened because Chimchar is Ash's only hope of winning this battle and it _really_ wants to prove Paul wrong… here and now. Even if Ash loses this battle, Paul still has to face the fact… that he underestimated Chimchar. The raw power Paul wanted from it for so long is finally here, but Paul can't have it under his control now… or ever."

Dawn couldn't help but crack a tiny smirk at that. "And won't _that_ be hard to live down…"

Again, Reggie couldn't take offense to Dawn's little jab; knowing Paul, he probably deserved it. "This is definitely a huge learning experience for both him and Ash," he said. "Like I said, just as some Pokémon have compatibility issues with each other, there can be the same issues between Pokémon and trainer. And Chimchar's evolution is a great example."

"Well, no matter who wins or loses, Paul's gonna have to face the facts and admit he's been totally _wrong_," Dawn muttered. "He was wrong to fight Brandon and think he could win with nothing but willpower, he was wrong about how important it is to bond with your Pokémon, _and_ he's definitely dead wrong about saying that Chimchar was a pathetic waste of time!" Her voice rose dramatically towards the end of her tirade, prompting Dawn to cover her mouth before she could insert her foot there again. It was hard to explain, but Dawn's perceptions of Paul have been quite warped since she saw Paul battle Brandon.

"It's not a matter of right or wrong," Reggie calmly told her. "This battle has both Ash and Paul's pride on the line. That's why this battle with make both trainers and Pokémon stronger in the long run."

Brock looked over to Reggie. "Hey… _that's_ why you wanted a full battle."

Reggie smiled and nodded to Brock with nothing more than a simple "Mmhm".

"Alright, Monferno! Use Mach Punch!"

Dumbstruck with Monferno's greatly increased speed and power from its evolution, Electabuzz ended up with a swift punch in its gut before it even had a chance to do anything. The power behind the punch was enough to send Electabuzz flying back, where it eventually crashed into a rock and shattered it upon impact.

"Alright!" Ash felt on top of the world now. Never mind his relatively unchanged predicament; this evolution was more than enough to take his mind off that problem for the time being. This was a time to bask in the glory of seeing the fruits of his hard labor at long last. Thanks to Paul messing things up, it was no easy feat for Ash to restore Chimchar to a functional state, and Ash suffered plenty of abuse for his troubles. But his resolve was strong; he had cared for this Pokémon since he first laid eyes on it, though back then Ash never would have guessed that he'd end up having the long-suffering Fire-type on his side eventually. As always, Ash's efforts would pay off in the long run… and Ash hadn't been this happy to reach that breakthrough since he'd gotten his ill-tempered Charizard under control years ago.

"Wow! Monferno's super-fast, Piplup!" Dawn gushed with excitement; Piplup itself was equally ecstatic.

The shock from seeing Electabuzz smacked back so effortlessly was short-lived for Paul; all this truly did was reaffirm that he was right after all about Monferno's true potential. What was once his trump card in the making was now shaping itself up to be one of his greatest threats in the near future. Still, Paul wouldn't give his rival the satisfaction of knowing how scorned he felt deep down; regardless of this miracle, Ash was still bound to lose this battle and Paul would do everything in his power to make sure that happened. "Thunder!"

From its antennae, the Electric Pokémon charged and fired a large blast of lightning straight at Monferno. Monferno probably could have dodged it, but being newly-evolved before its abusive former trainer made the Playful Pokémon rather intent on proving its newfound strength. Truly, Ash's disdain for Paul was nothing compared to Monferno's bitter, spiteful loathing. So instead, Monferno opted to cross its arms together, holding them up to buffer the attack as best it could. By no means was Monferno a tank like the majority of Paul's Pokémon, but its renewed resolve brought about a fierce adrenaline rush. It was no simple feat, but Monferno managed to absorb the Thunder attack without sustaining the all of the damage. The attack still forced Monferno back across the field regardless, and after a while the Playful Pokémon was nearing its limit of resistance, howling out as electric sparks coursed through its body.

"Monferno, hang in there!" Ash called to it, not liking his final Pokémon being forced into a defensive position. That wasn't going to help him win, so Ash went right back to calling out whatever move came to his mind at the moment. "Use Flame Wheel, now!"

Following orders to a tee, Monferno curled itself into its Flame Wheel position and charged straight for Electabuzz; the attack looked considerably more menacing with Monferno's enhanced power fueling it.

Paul wasn't about to take any chances. "Use Protect!"

Since Ash knew it was actually possible to break the Protect barrier – having seen Regirock do this with ease against Electabuzz – he decided he'd try for the same thing despite not having a legendary Pokémon on hand. Unsurprisingly, Monferno's Flame Wheel could not break the Protect barrier. The harder Monferno tried, the barrier was ever more resistant and eventually Monferno was rebounded up into the air, having tried too hard to break Protect. However, this position was usually good for Ash to use for an aerial attack; Monferno knew this as it canceled its Flame Wheel and prepared itself for Ash's next command.

"Now, Flamethrower from up there!"

"ThunderPunch, quick!" Paul followed up as he watched the flames spewed from Monferno start to rain down.

Electabuzz managed to dodge Flamethrower while its fist charged its own attack. Leaping up in Monferno's direction, it prepared to land a devastating blow. However, Monferno managed to dodge it.

Ash was elated to see Monferno instinctively dodging without him having to tell it to do so. "Monferno, Dig!" He knew this was a good time to utilize a super-effective move against the Electric Pokémon; so far Paul's Pokémon hadn't been very good about detecting Monferno (as Chimchar) while it was underground. Ash identified that as a weak point that he'd take advantage of and hopefully turn the tides of this battle.

Just as planned, Monferno burrowed itself deep into the ground before Electabuzz landed. Before Paul or Electabuzz had a chance to guess at where Monferno was and how to deal with it, Monferno emerged from the ground and gave Electabuzz a devastating uppercut. If anyone were to blink during this time, they would have missed what just happened for certain.

"Now, Flame Wheel!" Keeping a beat ahead of Paul each turn worked well against Ursaring, and Ash wasn't about to try to fix what wasn't broken. If he could maintain this lead, then perhaps there was hope for Ash and Monferno to take down another one of Paul's Pokémon.

"Thunder!" Paul was still keeping up, however. Even with a stronger Flame Wheel in Monferno's arsenal, Electabuzz was likely to overpower it if their attacks were to clash now; Electabuzz had evolved months ago and was accustomed to the changes brought about from it. Monferno only just now evolved: this was a matter of experience.

Thankfully, this did cross Ash's mind as he tried his best to keep a steady pace ahead of his rival. To combat a more experienced attack, he'd need more firepower… literally. "Use Flamethrower!"

While still in its Flame Wheel, Monferno used Flamethrower to create a spherical barrier of fire surrounding it. It was very reminiscent of what one might see in Pokémon Contest appeals; obviously Ash's training with Dawn over the months resulted in her influence even outside of the Ice Aqua Jet technique. The sphere of fire acted as a makeshift shield, absorbing the Thunder attack for a while… however, so much power colliding at once triggered another explosion loud enough to pop the ears of every spectator in the area. Only Paul remained stoic and unfazed by the magnificent clash of the elements as they waged war against one another.

Eventually, the area went quiet as smoke obscured the battlefield once more. Paul saw Electabuzz land on the ground, seeming to have made it through the clash without sustaining any real damage. Monferno was still somewhere within the dark clouds, which proved to be to its advantage when it suddenly shot out from the smoke. In an instant, Monferno – still in its Flame Wheel position – landed a devastating blow on the Electric Pokémon. It was a brilliant strategic move on Monferno's part, and here Paul thought he'd never see the day that Ash would be capable of building such a strategy. Electabuzz was clearly in pain, but its trainer was not worried; to him, this was merely a "lucky shot". Ash seemed to be guaranteed a few of those each time they battled.

"Keep it up, Monferno…!" Ash had to keep pressing himself to be positive no matter how grim his situation was. It was positive reinforcement that allowed this Pokémon to blossom into the powerful being it was always meant to be; Ash felt he owed it to Monferno to keep his spirits as high as possible. It was gradually becoming easier for him to truly believe he could turn this battle around after all… but he'd soon find that believing in himself could only go so far; something Paul already learned the hard way long before this.

"All Paul can do right now is defend," Reggie calmly noted; his eyes still glued to the battle. "Ash isn't giving him any opportunity to counterattack. He's reacting much quicker now…"

Brock nodded. "You're right. I imagine this evolution happening just now is still leaving an impression on Paul and Electabuzz as well… and because of that, their reaction time isn't up to par to how it was earlier."

"Ash got his momentum back because of Monferno's unbelievable speed!" Dawn exclaimed, so enthusiastic that her hands were tightening into fists. "There's nothing Paul has that can outspeed Monferno now!" There was some truth to this; the only Pokémon of Paul's that could outpace Monferno would have been Weavile, who was long since eliminated in addition to having a massive type disadvantage against a Fire/Fighting-type.

"Mach Punch; _go!_" Ash wanted to get this over with; he wanted to knock Electabuzz out and move on to the next Pokémon he'd have to defeat. He only hoped Monferno would have the stamina to keep up the pace to defeat three more Pokémon after this.

"Protect!" Paul was still putting great emphasis on defense, which was the smart thing to do in this situation. Again, Monferno was unable to break the barrier of light Electabuzz formed around itself and the punch was repelled. As Monferno reeled back, Paul spotted a tiny window of opportunity to finally fight back. "Thunder!"

That was the moment Paul needed; Thunder struck Monferno directly and inflicted a great deal of damage.

"Monferno, no…!" Ash couldn't help but get emotional every time his Pokémon sustained a hit. This was only working to his disadvantage, as he spent time he could have used to counter-counter attack to worry about Monferno's wellbeing. Paul identified this as the Achilles Heel of Ash's battling style, as he exploited it so many times in the past that resulted in victory for him and utter shame for his rival.

"Quickly switching gears between Protect and attacks shows how impressive Paul's Electabuzz is," Brock said as he analyzed the Electric Pokémon. Though long since removed from his days as a Gym Leader, Brock still possessed the knowledge and mindset of his former title and saw the same window of opportunity that Paul did… additionally, he knew Ash was making a mistake by focusing too much on his Pokémon and too little on his opponent.

"Yeah, I guess you could say Electabuzz is Paul's ongoing project for this year," Reggie affirmed. "Every time Paul starts out in a new region, he captures a Pokémon early on and makes it the center of his battling style and strategy. Nidoking was Paul's project for Kanto, for example."

Dawn looked over to Reggie curiously. "Yeah, come to think of it… Nidoking was the only Pokémon that did pretty well against Brandon if I remember right."

"And Paul told me he battled Ash with Electabuzz back when it was still a freshly-caught Elekid when they first met," Reggie recalled. "Since then, Paul's made a habit of keeping Electabuzz around without rotating him with his reserves much. You've both seen already how Electabuzz is expertly balancing defense and offense in this battle; I think that's what Paul's going for here."

"Makes sense," Brock concurred. "Most of Paul's Pokémon that we've seen are more suited for a defensive style of battling. He doesn't often use Pokémon that are lacking in defense or anything that's along the lines of what Ash prefers. Even the species they share have distinctly different battling styles."

"That's right. You already saw how Weavile didn't last long in this battle," Reggie reminded them. "Paul has a clear and steady preference, but he also knows variety in a team is important. That's why he's chosen Electabuzz to be part of his project; it's one of the few _balanced_ Pokémon on his team."

Meanwhile, Monferno managed to bounce its way back to its side of the battlefield, though its fatigue was visibly obvious. Once it was back in its original spot a mere few feet away from Ash, the Playful Pokémon fell to its knees and slumped forward; Monferno was in pain. The cause for this was soon made apparent when electricity sparks surged briefly over its body.

"Monferno, are you alright?" Ash didn't like the sight of those tiny bolts harming his Pokémon. The last thing he wanted was another situation with a Pokémon afflicted with ongoing status problems during the battle as poor Pikachu did. "Hold on…" Thinking back on Pikachu's burned status and seeing the state Monferno was in now was a cause for concern. Thankfully, Ash's overwhelming love and concern for his Pokémon did allow him to think _some_ things through before charging in head-on into danger. He decided he'd test Monferno before trying something risky against Electabuzz. "Monferno, use Flamethrower, now!"

Monferno struggled to get back on its feet, not about to let Ash down. It charged up the energy necessary to spew flames from its mouth, but the static sparks made their presence known again and gave Monferno's body a brutal shock. This rendered Monferno unable to deploy its attack.

"I knew it; it's paralyzed!" Ash exclaimed, unable to hold back the slight grimace on his face.

"It can be an added effect of Thunder," Brock acknowledged solemnly. "This isn't good. As if the paralysis itself wasn't enough, it's also going to put a huge dent in Monferno's speed."

Dawn was horrified. "How could it happen _now?_ Monferno needs that speed to beat Electabuzz…!"

By snuffing out Ash's only true advantage in this battle, Paul smirked. He knew the end was near, as did Electabuzz. It truly satisfied him to see Ash looking utterly helpless and lost, just as Paul himself had felt for so many weeks. No matter how much Paul changed for the better, his spiteful side would not recede so easily.

However, his cocky expression soon changed to one of curiosity as a sudden change sparked within Monferno – most likely in reaction to what was now a hopeless situation. Ash was beside himself with the inevitable cold, hard truth that he'd lose this battle… Monferno could feel its trainer's anguish. Fueled by its undying determination to prove a point to its former trainer, Monferno suddenly let out a raging cry that echoed throughout the Lake Acuity area. Despite its paralysis, Monferno found the strength to swing its arms about; hands formed into fists and throwing a tantrum not unlike the kind Ursaring had when its Guts ability activated.

But Monferno had no such ability… Paul's eyes widened as he watched the fire at the end of Monferno's tail grow in size and intensity; the flames shot out in multiple directions and radiated heat strong enough to be felt by both challengers and the spectators. It was as if someone had just poured jet fuel on Monferno's tail, but Paul suddenly remembered that a similar phenomenon happened when Chimchar's Blaze ability was inadvertently invoked by Ash during a battle they had months ago. The rage, the out-of-control behavior, and the considerable growth of its natural flames… all signs were pointing to Monferno reaching the point Paul could never achieve.

_This_ was a cause for concern, but Paul regained his self-restraint, though he remained visibly concerned. Ash, on the other hand, didn't hold back the utter shock he felt upon seeing Monferno cry out in rage. The similarity to this scenario and the first time Ash saw the staggering power of Blaze gave the desperate young trainer more than enough reason to panic at the sight.

"Oh no, is that Blaze?" Dawn asked out loud the question that was on everyone's mind.

Everyone except the smirking, self-assured Reggie, that is. "That's not Blaze; it's Monferno's determination not to be beaten manifesting in its flames."

Reggie of all people would know how to tell the difference, having raised a Chimchar to an Infernape as his very first Pokémon. Anyone who owned a Chimchar or any regional Fire-type starter was bound to be challenged by the overwhelming power of Blaze at some point in their lives, though the same can be said for those with Water-type or Grass-type starters facing the daunting prospects of Torrent and Overgrow, respectively.

Monferno continued its defiant screeching meant for Electabuzz and Paul as the flames emitting from its tail grew even more intense. The not-so Playful Pokémon raised both arms and set itself in a fighting stance. Finally, Ash was able to see that Monferno was in control of itself after all and this thankfully wouldn't be a repeat of the previous incident. He had overheard Reggie and was able to believe the breeder's words once it was made obvious that Monferno had no intention to go on a rampage at everything it saw – only Electabuzz. Ash felt eagerness swell up inside him again; the desire to prove Paul wrong to the highest degree and the belief that he could do that today burned more brightly than ever before. With this power, Ash knew this was his time… it was Monferno's time… it was _their_ time to prove their selves worthy of the title Pokémon and Pokémon Trainer.

"That's right, Monferno! We're not gonna give up no matter what!" Ash proclaimed, feeling the dread and harsh realities inflicted on him by Paul melt away with the pure-hearted desires he possessed since he was a young child; the excitement he felt when he was ten years old and starting his journey. All of his experience over those past four years built up to this moment and he could feel this battle was nearing its end. He resolved to have Monferno take down Electabuzz in one final spectacular attack.

"Alright Monferno, Mach Punch!"

Paul watched the hollering Monferno make a grand final charge at his Pokémon. Knowing Ash's tendency to get lucky with his words of encouragement (which Paul still thought was a fishy tactic, if it could even be called that) was what influenced Paul's decision on how to handle this. He could either defend and neutralize the attack, or he could take a chance and have Electabuzz intrude on the assault with its own power.

To go on the offensive or defensive… that was the question. Monferno's attack would land first regardless, but Paul trusted Electabuzz would be able to withstand it. Paul remembered how utterly green Ash's Grotle was in battle when it first evolved; nothing unusual from freshly-evolved Pokémon engaged in a battle. Monferno seemed to be adapting much better than its Grass-type teammate, but Paul knew there had to be an opening for him to take advantage of. Ash was obviously going for an all-or-nothing attack here… afterwards, Monferno would be utterly vulnerable and a sitting Psyduck if Electabuzz could withstand the Playful Pokémon's fury.

Paul considered every option, but wouldn't let himself get lost in thought at a time like this. The decision was difficult… however, Paul still retained his own philosophy about making decisions. Right or wrong, making a decision was better than not making one at all.

Whatever the case, Paul could at least afford to be wrong here. He had three Pokémon left to finish the job if this didn't go the way he wanted. Still, he'd be much more satisfied to know if his first choice was the right one, so that he would be able to trust his instincts again.

"Electabuzz, ThunderPunch!"

The Electric Pokémon charged at Monferno with just as much fury as its opponent. It was well aware of its status as Paul's prodigy Pokémon and was determined to prove to Paul that he made the right choice with it.

Both Pokémon were set to collide at the very center of the battlefield; Mach Punch and ThunderPunch were both fully charged and made contact; naturally, their collision triggered a massive explosion much larger than any other in this battle.

The spectators were speechless as they witnessed the blinding colliding energies consuming the battlefield. Paul remained calm yet cautious as he remained still and stoic as his own first Pokémon while the elements raged on before his eyes. Ash looked on, obviously worried. Silently, he prayed that his Monferno would be alright after this… regardless of who would win this clash. The lengthy duration of the explosion meant it would take a while for the thick, black smoke to clear out and reveal the outcome of the battle.

All those present in witnessing the battle were shocked when the dissipating smoke and dust clouds upon seeing the result: both Monferno and Electabuzz were still _standing_. After everything that happened, at a first glance it was as if the clash had never happened.

Both Pokémon were in close proximity to each other; both Ash and Paul knew that some devastating blows on both sides had been exchanged while they were blinded by the raw, unbridled energy of their Pokémon.

This was it: one Pokémon was about to fall.

Electabuzz was heard murmuring its name, though its smirking indicated that it successfully endured the final strike. It could be inferred that Electabuzz was also able to connect its own attack with its opponent. How or when, however, would never be figured out.

Monferno, who had done its very best, who earned its long yearned for evolution and did everything in its power to represent Ash and his ideals in this battle…

"_Monfernoooooo!"_

… Had met its match. Upon seeing the weary, pained Monferno fall face-first into the battle-torn dirt and hearing the shrill cry of its trainer, Paul unexpectedly had mixed feelings about what he was seeing. It seemed so surreal, though this was what he wanted…

"Monferno is unable to battle and the winner is Electabuzz!" Olivier gestured to the right side of the battlefield. "Which means that the victor is Paul!"

And with that, the battle was finally over.

"Oh no…"

Dawn was the only one able to utter a single word during the immediate aftermath of the battle. Despite her loyalty to Ash, even the cheerful Dawn couldn't ignore the position Ash's mistakes landed her friend in and how it ultimately cost him the battle. Like Brock and Reggie, she eventually started to look at the battle from a realistic point of view rather than her usual idealistic mindset. But despite that, it made Dawn no less upset of the battle's outcome. She couldn't imagine the kind of pain Ash was going through now, though she was no stranger to being a victim of damaged pride. Still, this scenario was nothing like Dawn's deal with her rivals. The aspiring Coordinator couldn't have been more thankful to end up with pleasant, civil long-term rivals… because when Dawn imagined a certain what-if scenario, she knew Paul would metaphorically eat her for lunch if they were rivals.

If only Dawn knew of the irony from such an imagination.

For all their complaining for the hard work, the Team Rocket trio were respectfully silent and somber; utterly heartbroken to see their favorite underdog defeated this way. Needless to say, not a single one of them had the heart to break in with an inappropriate Team Rocket motto and kidnap Pikachu this time. These days, Team Rocket knew better about when this was _not_ their business to intrude upon. After all, there would always be a next time.

The battle indeed had gone on for hours; the sun was setting on the western horizon and the group was long overdue for a proper dinner. However, hunger was the last thing on anyone's mind at this time.

Both Brock and Reggie felt this would be the result for a long time after seeing Ash act so carelessly since the battle started. Brock hated to be this cynical, but he couldn't ignore the truth right in front of his face. However, the battle wasn't the only thing on the breeder-to-be's mind… the incident from ten days ago was still fresh in his mind and all of the words of wisdom shared by Reggie today convinced Brock that there was something important behind all this… something he wasn't telling anyone for whatever reason. Brandon had been mentioned so frequently, Brock refused to believe that it was a mere coincidence that the Frontier Brain's presence had such a profound effect both on Paul and Reggie.

Consoling Ash would have to wait; more likely than not he'd want to be alone at this point anyway. For the moment, Brock was determined to have a serious talk with Reggie before this day was over. If he didn't take this opportunity now, Brock knew there was a good chance he and the others would never cross paths with Reggie again. He had to do this _today_… when the time was right.

Ash eventually made his way towards the defeated Monferno, kneeling down to cradle the weary Pokémon in his arms. The sting of defeat was tormenting Ash, but his selflessness nature never failed to buffer that pain, so that Ash could do the most important thing a trainer needed to do in this situation. Whatever pain Ash felt, no doubt Monferno suffered it a hundredfold.

Feeling the warm arms of its caring trainer, Monferno managed to crack open its eyes to see Ash Ketchum forcing the biggest smile he ever faked in his life. No doubt the lowly Fire-type was overwhelmed with disappointment for its failure and still remembered how it was ruthlessly punished for failing anything regardless of how hard it tried. Though Monferno knew Ash could be trusted and would never follow its former trainer's example, the depression brought about by failing even with its newly unlocked powers took precedence over everything else.

Some mannerisms brought about by Paul's influence were harder to shake than others; Monferno actually felt that it _should_ be punished for causing Ash to lose on such a great scale. It could tell plain as day that Ash wasn't as happy as he appeared on the outside. For all the unconditional kind things Ash had done for Monferno in the past, it pained the Playful Pokémon deep down in its heart to face the gracious trainer after inadvertently bringing down his own spirit. For bringing Ash down this hard… Monferno had no desire to forgive itself. Not yet, at least.

"Monferno… thank you," was all Ash had to say. Or rather, that was all he _could_ say at this time. At times like this Ash was grateful to be wearing a cap almost all the time; it was very useful for hiding expressions Ash didn't want others seeing from him, such as the urge to cry that he felt then and there when he saw Monferno smile back at him, whispering a whimper to its trainer as it to assure Ash that Monferno wasn't blaming him for this. That was all well and fine, but it didn't stop Ash from blaming _himself_.

Before Paul recalled the victorious – yet exhausted – Electabuzz back to its Pokéball for a well-earned rest (not that Paul would ever say that out loud; he never saw the point in it), he took note o f Electabuzz's condition. Though pretending to be alright, Paul noticed the Electric Pokémon being a bit weak in the knees as if it were doing everything in its power to remain on its feet. Electabuzz looked directly into Paul's eyes while keeping its paws covered over the left side of its abdomen. Its large appendages well covered up whatever it was favoring, but Paul could tell that was likely the area of Electabuzz's body where Monferno landed its final Mach Punch hit.

The match was indeed much closer than Paul would have liked it to be… but with no desire to dwell on it in front of all these people, Paul silently returned Electabuzz to its ball. Meanwhile, everyone who watched the battle (excluding Team Rocket, whom all slinked away into obscurity) came over to speak with the two battle-weary trainers.

"That was a spectacular battle, you two. Many thanks," Reggie congratulated. It pained him seeing Ash holding his beaten and battered Monferno; it was almost like looking at a mirror from years past whenever Reggie lost a match. Still, as a master of suppressing his emotions, Reggie seemed unfazed as usual.

Hearing the honest words from his older brother, who had trashed him in every battle they had leading up to this day did much to calm whatever negative feelings that dwelled within Paul at that very moment. "Yeah, it sure was," he replied, giving his brother the privilege of seeing a rare occurrence: an earnest smile. There was nothing malicious behind it at all, to the surprise of many.

This prompted Ash to avert his gaze from Monferno towards his rival. Ash expected a number of spiteful, rude, slanderous taunts from the trainer who had just beaten him 2-6; Paul always had the perfect, vicious quip to deter Ash from reaching his goal every time he won a battle so far, and for Paul to trash him efficiently in a full battle… needless to say Ash was preparing himself for the worst, as he was already feeling like dirt just from losing and letting Monferno (and all of his Pokémon) down.

Somehow, Paul being civil in this instance was almost as nerve-wracking as his usual rudeness. Ash couldn't help but grit his teeth in aggravation of Paul seemingly messing with his head, but he resisted the urge to make a single sound. As if that weren't enough, Paul was now behaving as if Ash wasn't even there at all. Was that it? Did this mean the rivalry truly was only real to Ash after all?

Then again, Paul did honestly enjoy the battle… but was it because it was genuinely challenging or because Paul had the pleasure of slaughtering Ash's team as if they were nothing?

Ash had no idea what sort of inner turmoil simmered within his rival; something wasn't right here, but he couldn't put his finger on it. If he knew the truth, perhaps he'd be more understanding. But Paul had no intention of ever letting Ash know the troubles of his personal life; that he got to see the obvious animosity between an estranged father and a bitter son was way too much as it was, in Paul's opinion.

For now and always, Ash would remain oblivious to just how complicated Paul's life really was… and why this battle was treated so differently from all the others they had in the past.

"It's been a while since I've seen that look on your face," Reggie told Paul, delighted and proud to see the nice, pleasant smile he always knew his brother was capable of making. After dealing with a miserable little brother who was on the verge of already giving up for over a week, the fruits of Reggie's labor were now shown before him. He couldn't remember the last time he was this happy with Paul, but it was truly a milestone he was honored to witness. Reggie didn't know the whole truth about the grand scheme of Paul's problems, but this smile was the first step towards his brother's recovery.

At long last, Paul's losing streak was over.

"I'll send you my Pokémon," Paul told Reggie. Though feeling on top of the world, Paul still lacked the desire to hang around and make small talk with people he honestly didn't care for. He especially didn't want to talk about his feelings, either.

"Got it, Paul," Reggie understood, nodding to him as Paul immediately started walking to resume his journey. The breeder was about to stop him and offer a ride in his van, as Paul's next destination was obvious to him: Snowpoint City. Now that Paul had made a full recovery and regained his confidence as a Pokémon Trainer, he felt he was ready to follow up on that rematch he promised Candice. It had taken him far longer than he wanted to get his seventh badge, but finally the distractions had come to an end and it was time to get back to business.

Reggie held back on insisting to give Paul a ride as he recalled the words of his father, said nine days ago when their training had just started:

"_There are times, son… where we need to be alone. Let the kid pull himself back together. If you do all the work, he'll feel worthless and codependent."_

Paul seemed alright now, but Reggie knew inherently that his brother still possessed internal struggles that he needed to overcome. The fact that Paul never could defeat Reggie was one such hurdle. Reggie was fairly sure Paul had a certain person on his mind at this moment, too; a person who clearly left a positive influence on his training and battling style… not that Paul would ever admit it.

And that was just the tip of the iceberg.

"Oh, Ash…"

Reggie's attention turned towards the source of the voice who spoke up: Dawn. It was softly spoken, as she didn't want to come off as patronizing to Ash, who suffered quite a heavy loss today. Sadly, there was no way for this battle to conclude with both sides in happy spirits. Reggie could see the reason for Dawn's concern: Ash was facing way from everyone, only intent on watching Paul walk off towards the sunset until he was no longer in viewing range, still carefully holding the injured Monferno in his arms.

Looking more closely at Ash, Reggie saw the occasional twitch and slight shaking. Ash wasn't making a sound, but it was obvious that he was fighting the urge to cry and was losing that battle as well.

Wisely, Reggie decided he'd apply his father's wisdom to Ash as well; smothering him with attention at this point would do the boy no good, and luckily Brock and Dawn were able to see it that way as well.

However, before Reggie could make a move to start packing up and heading home (which he'd been away from far longer than he expected to be; no doubt he felt immensely guilty for making Maylene take over the daycare in addition to her Gym Leader duties), he felt a hand on his shoulder.

Reggie looked down at the hand, then back towards the one who stopped him: Brock.

A short period of awkward silence followed as Olivier made his preparations to leave, Ash entrusted Dawn with his Pokémon that all needed to be taken back to the Pokémon Center to heal their battle wounds, and Ash himself went off to isolate himself and reflect on today's events.

"What's up, Brock?" Reggie finally asked.

"Reggie…" Brock did feel a bit guilty to insist on the prodding he was about to do with Reggie's personal life, but in order to understand where Paul was coming from and the rivalry wit h Ash, Reggie was his best hope for achieving that enlightenment. "We need to talk," he insisted, looking around to see no one nearby at the moment. "Privately, if you don't mind…?"

That ominous, sinking feeling Reggie had in his gut was not unwarranted; he knew Brock to be the quiet, studious type and there had been a lot of odd things for him to observe over the past ten days. Against his better judgment, he nodded. "Sure, no problem… is everything okay?"

"You could say that," Brock cryptically answered. "But I'd like to clear the air here once and for all… because the last thing I want to do is make unfounded assumptions." He looked over the lakeside before pointing to a secluded spot. "Over there."

At long last, Brock was about to get some answers.

* * *

"I finally did it… I broke the losing streak. There's… there's a way to prevent it from holding me back after all."

Paul was leaning against a tree as he said this to no one in particular; utterly exhausted from the intensity of the full battle he just took part in. He could see several dots of light making up the frigid settlement known as Snowpoint City just ahead of him.

"I thought being sick would prevent me from being able to be a Pokémon Trainer," Paul admitted to himself; being all alone allowed himself to let down his guard and sound as emotional as he truly felt. "I thought I'd never win again… but I finally did it."

He looked up at the night sky, shimmering with stars from across the galaxy. "That's how you managed to live as long as you did… mother. You didn't give up, no matter how many times you were shut down… I just wish I knew more. But I don't hate you for this… even if I don't really know you, I couldn't hold something like this against you."

Being surrounded by people for so long made Paul overwhelmed with things he wanted to say out loud but couldn't, be it due to not wanting to admit he had a disease or just not wanting anyone knowing how he truly felt, as Paul was naturally aloof like that.

"You were probably a lot stronger than I'd give you credit for," Paul said to the sky. "But I promise I won't let this disease rule my life anymore. It didn't stop you from starting a family… from being a Pokémon Breeder… so there's no reason it should stop me from doing what I set out to do from the beginning. I get it now… nothing good came of pretending it didn't exist. And I didn't get anywhere using it as an excuse to let my skills deteriorate… no matter how much I want to get rid of it… find a cure and get to live a normal life like everyone else… you wanted that, too. But you pressed on with your life… you made a name for yourself and everything."

Paul raised his hands, tightened into fists of determination. "And that's what I want. So please don't think less of me for not telling anyone right now. Everyone has to see me for who I truly am: Paul the Pokémon Trainer, someday the Champion… not Paul the terminally ill. You know how fussy Reggie can be… that's not a risk I'm willing to take. But when the time's right… I'll tell them the truth. Isn't that what you did?"

Of course, Paul didn't expect an answer. But through this disease, Paul finally had a link to his mother; something he could relate to her with. Even though she was long gone, never to live again, Paul was able to see life a bit differently after spending time with the remnants of his struggling family. He had finally grown to respect his mother, even if she was a breeder. Even if she didn't battle with her Pokémon, living with a crippling terminal disease and being unafraid to live her life to the fullest in spite of that showed the true warrior's spirit within her. The desire to fight against opposition burned strongly within her… it was one of the reasons why Brandon grew to love her in the first place, and finally Paul could see why his mother was so adored by his family. Paul assumed his lack of personal memories of her meant she was nothing special (in addition to him being only five when she died), but now he understood through her life experiences why she was to be remembered fondly.

And through her life experiences, Paul finally came to accept his own life's situation. Maybe a cure would finally be discovered within his lifetime… and maybe it wouldn't. Either way, Paul knew now it shouldn't impede his ability to live his life to the fullest. While he still had no answer for Brandon's very important question, Paul did have a vague feel for what may be his answer in the future when he battles Brandon again.

But all of that was a long time from now… Paul set his mind on the rematch with Candice, who knew exactly how sick he was.

"I'll show Candice that it'll take more than a terminal disease to make me give up," Paul said; his resolve stronger than ever before. He continued his walk towards Snowpoint City, but eventually he stopped, realizing something important.

"… I still don't have a strategy," he realized. "But I'm not going to prove her right by using Pokémon that would make the battle easier." His stubbornness hadn't changed a bit.

Quickly finding a bench next to a street light, Paul sat down and dug through his backpack, scrambling to find a notepad and a pencil in order to jot down strategy ideas. However, his eyes widened when he felt an unusual texture of paper within his backpack. After getting a solid grip on it and managing to pull it out without tearing the paper, Paul was aghast at what he pulled out.

"… The strategy Conway made for me…"

He never threw it away. Various distractions prevented him from doing so when he originally attempted to toss it, and since then he completely forgot about it. On the other side of the bench, there was a convenient trash can a couple of feet away. Paul gazed at it for a moment before looking down at the paper.

Now that Reggie had sufficiently guilt-tripped him over what happened, Paul was finally able to see where he'd been so needlessly cruel to someone who had nothing but good intentions for him. Over the ten-day training period, Paul did inadvertently apply some of Conway's techniques to his training, some of which were used in the full battle. Much as Paul didn't like to think about it, he couldn't deny the truth any longer.

He missed Conway.

The more Paul looked at the strategy, the more lonely and guilt-ridden he felt. He had no idea where Conway was now and only _assumed_ he was okay. Things were admittedly pretty crazy when they split up, but he hoped Conway had good sense to stay away from that freakish red-haired woman. If Paul knew where to start looking, he would have considered doing so after he got his seventh badge out of the way, but especially after so much time had passed since Paul last saw him, Conway could literally be anywhere in the Sinnoh region. Maybe he could've even gone to another region by now.

Paul knew this would be tormenting his moral conscience until he did something about it, so he decided he'd start at the most logical place to find answers about Conway: their shared hometown of Veilstone City. He'd pass by home once his business was finished here and hopefully stumble into some clues to Conway's whereabouts, apologize, and make things right again. After all, Paul _did_ have Conway to thank for still being alive today, rather than being killed in a stupid stunt to catch a cruise vessel due to his impatience.

Until then, however, Paul settled on doing the next best thing for his former acquaintance.

"Well, Conway, you sounded pretty sure of yourself about this strategy working out when you made it," Paul said with a slight smirk as he studied the details of the wrinkled paper.

"Tomorrow, I'll put it to the test."

* * *

**( TBC )**


	19. Black Ice Battle!

**( Notes: So... 1 year and 11 months since the last update. What can I say to that...? Well, being an adult sucks, hormones suck, Best Wishes REALLY sucks, and when things get me down in the dumps or angry, I can't write. At the very least, there's a great amount of Best Wishes SPITE going on in this chapter if you look closely enough. My other drive was to make this gym battle better than all of the Best Wishes gym battles combined. At the risk of coming off as overly haughty, I like to think I succeeded there. **

**This here chapter is primarily focused on battling after the first scene here. Major things are getting set up, because major things are gonna be happening in chapter 20. Awesome things. Things that will be far easier to write than gym battles, so be optimistic that chapter 20 won't take a year to come out! That was sorta the other roadblock for me finishing this chapter: GYM BATTLES ARE HARD TO WRITE. At least when you try to make them overly epic like I did. How in the hell did I manage to write the Byron gym battle so neat and succinctly...? **

**Well, anyway, this chapter marks the end of an era for the story. The final chapter in which Paul is stuck in Snowpoint City/areas near Snowpoint City!**

**Still, I really am sorry to all of you for this ungodly long gap between chapter updates. I keep saying this fic is not dead, and I certainly mean it! Now enjoy your very belated wall of text some call a "story"! )**

* * *

"First of all, I just wanted to say thanks for agreeing to this, Reggie. I… think you already know what I want to talk with you about."

Reggie resisted the urge to avoid eye contact with Brock as he took a seat on the same grassy hill he sat on earlier in the afternoon before the full battle commenced. The breeder-to-be himself had already taken a seat close by.

"Well, I guess you're probably right," Reggie said, forcing his easygoing and pleasant tone out. "You're really perceptive for your age… Ash is definitely in good hands with you."

Brock smiled and nodded, but quickly resumed his serious expression. "He's come so far that he won't need my help to overcome this loss, hopefully," he expressed. "But that's not what I need to talk to you about."

"Of course," Reggie understood, finding it harder and harder to feign both his innocence and obliviousness.

"For the record, I'm not holding this against you if my suspicions are correct," Brock wanted to make that perfectly clear first and foremost. "But there's been something on my mind the past ten days…"

The gradually darkening sky proved to be a nice visual distraction for Reggie as he endured the beginning of this interrogation. "Since Paul battled Brandon, huh…"

"Normally I wouldn't prod… because I know even now it's really none of my business," Brock admitted. "But Paul's been such an enigma from the beginning… not just to Ash, but to Dawn and myself as well. Since we learned about you, it made me even more curious about how Paul came to be what he is today. He's a tough nut to crack for sure, but with a diplomatic approach I've gotten _some_ information out of him from time to time. But what little he's given me hasn't really fallen into place… until that day."

"You actually got him to talk about himself?" Reggie was impressed; even _he_ had trouble getting Paul to open up just asking how his day was, much less anything deeper than that.

"Only bits and pieces," Brock humbly replied. "But from what I've learned both from his testimonies and studying his behavior along with what you've told us… I think I'm finally beginning to understand what's going on here. Most of all, I can relate to your position, Reggie."

This certainly wasn't some sort of strict, no-nonsense interrogating that Reggie dreaded would be in store for him. It wasn't exactly a logical thing to expect from Brock of all people, but Reggie _had_ been spending much of his time with the kind of people who would've made this scenario uncomfortable to him.

"You can…?"

"I'm the eldest child of my family," Brock told him. "Though I have several brothers and sisters, the fact remains that I had to be their pillar of support every step of the way. I had to take care of them both at home and financially. You see, I was a Gym Leader once upon a time."

Now Reggie could see how Brock could sympathize with him, but he had to ask… "_You?_ Doing all that work by yourself? But what about your-"

"That's what I wanted to ask you when we first met months ago," Brock cut him off. "My parents… both went through a period where they just didn't feel like being _parents_. They had no right to take off when they did…" The aspiring breeder paused himself, regaining his professional composure. Even with his family situation for the most part mended, Brock still had difficulty forgiving his parents for the trouble and inconvenience they brought upon him personally to this very day. "But they did eventually come back… they're still irritating at times, but they've seem to have gotten the midlife crisis out of their systems now. They're back to being parents and one of my brothers is minding the Pewter Gym so I could go out and pursue my dreams. It's not exactly what you'd call a normal family situation, I guess," Brock uneasily figured. "But… I could tell you're in a similar position with Paul and all the young Pokémon you raise back home."

"Huh, you're right," Reggie said, amused at the similarities of their lives' mishaps. "It's no easy task minding over so many young ones… especially my brother. But I wouldn't have it any other way." Reggie didn't like lying through his teeth like this; he could already feel the burn of guilt, but he felt he had no right to whine and moan to anyone, much less someone younger than him who (in Reggie's opinion) must have had a much harder time living a normal life with so many little siblings.

That was the opening Brock sought after to segue into his true interrogation. "So, is it true you and Paul don't have a good relationship with your parents?"

Reggie froze momentarily, but Brock figured he wouldn't get an answer right away. There had to have been a good reason for both brothers to avoid the topic of their mother and father at every corner and turn.

"Sensitive topic, huh?" Brock correctly assumed. "Sorry…"

"N-no," Reggie interrupted, not wanting to offend Brock or make him feel as if he did something wrong. Even if the parent topic was a sensitive one for Reggie to delve into, a part of him felt the need to keep the conversation going. If Paul were still here, no doubt he would have cut Reggie off completely and made a hasty exit at this point. But even with Paul's desires to keep their family business confidential not being forgotten by Reggie, the elder brother still wanted to maintain his right to vent. Already, Reggie knew Brock would be one of the best people to open up to. It wasn't every day Reggie would meet somebody other than his brother who could comprehend the kind of pain he felt on a daily basis. There was Roark to fall back on, though by now even his family had made amends, both to Reggie's joy and envy. "It's… it's okay, Brock. Paul's not here to dictate my every word… as long as this just stays between us…"

Brock nodded, showing no hesitation at all. "So you have been holding back, and he was the reason just as I thought. You have my word, Reggie; I'm not doing this for Ash's sake, anyway. I really do want to come to an understanding with Paul _and_ you for my own personal reasons."

"I don't often get to talk about this kind of thing," Reggie admitted with a heavy heart. "Mostly I don't want to bother anyone with my problems, and it's not like most people would really get it anyway… but it sounds like you understand exactly where I'm coming from."

"As long as you're willing," Brock assured him. "I'd be more than happy to help out. I think the best place to start is whatever situation you have with your parents. Are they separated?"

It was a fair question… one Reggie had heard many times in the past when people inquired of his mother's whereabouts in the past, due to her reputation as Veilstone City's best Pokémon Breeder. Even if this brought back less than pleasant memories, Reggie knew deep down talking this through with Brock would be for his own best interest. Now that Paul seemed rather content and free of his problems for the time being, Reggie would allow himself at least one night where he focused on his own needs.

"They are… and they aren't," Reggie answered; his tone still uneasy as he subconsciously grasped at blades of grass between his fingers. "We started out as an average four-person family… Mom and Dad really did love each other. But that was almost eight years ago… since then, we lost Mom… she'd been very sick all her life."

Brock felt himself tense; one of the first things he wondered about when he tried to figure Paul out was what kind of mother would raise such a cold and abrasive son. He couldn't imagine what such a mother would be like, but the possibility of Paul being raised without a mother at all did cross his mind. Whether she was divorced with Paul being under his father's custody or simply passed on before her time, Brock could tell there was a lack of motherly influence in Paul's life. Obviously Reggie was trying his best to compensate, but that would only go so far.

"Sorry for your loss," Brock quietly said, trying not to make eye contact with Reggie at that time. "I can't imagine what it must be like having to grow up without a mother…"

"It's the hardest thing in the world," Reggie said with the utmost certainty. "Though I was lucky to have been old enough to remember her. Everything she taught me, I committed to memory. She was a Pokémon Breeder, too. That's why I eventually decided to follow in her footsteps instead of my father's," he explained before letting out a sigh. "But Paul… he was only five years old when our mother died. So he doesn't really remember Mom at all; anything he knows of her now is through me."

"What about your father?" Brock asked. "He'd remember her better than either of you. I figured there was something missing in Paul, and the lack of a motherly influence in his life makes a lot of sense based on his behavior. But… your father _is_ still alive, right?"

The way Brock asked the question made it sound almost rhetorical in nature; Reggie wasn't certain whether or not to consider that a bad thing. This was crossing into territory that would betray his little brother's wishes, but if Brock could keep it to himself, then it shouldn't be that big of a deal. Though Reggie rarely paid mind to his own needs, subjects like this were where the breeder was willing to make an exception. Besides, Paul only really cared that _Ash_ didn't find out; so long as Brock kept Ash out of this, then there would be no need for a conflict.

"He's alive," Reggie affirmed, trying his best to hide the bitterness in his tone. "But he's never really around. Mom was the breadwinner of our family, so Dad needed a job that would cover for the whole family after she passed on. He found one, but it was based in another region. So it's not like he had a choice…"

"It must have been a tough decision to make," Brock noted, obviously taking this information as proof of his suspicions. "So raising your brother _has_ been solely your duty…"

"I did the best I could," Reggie blurted out. "I know I wasn't perfect, and I know it's probably my fault that Paul ended up the way he did today… I just wasn't good enough…"

Brock waved dismissively at Reggie while shaking his head. "To be perfectly honest with you, Reggie, I don't think you can be faulted for the way Paul turned out. You two are so different… Ash and Dawn couldn't believe you were brothers at first. Zoey was just as shocked… but I've seen how good of a breeder you are, Reggie," he commended. "You inspire me to do even more to further my own goal as the best Pokémon Breeder."

"Ah… thanks," Reggie said with a slight laugh, feeling flushed. "I'm really just going off how I remember Mom doing it… in a way, I feel like a parent to all the Pokémon I take care of. And since Paul started traveling with me, I felt like I had to do whatever I could to make sure Paul still had a parental figure he could look up to. Somehow, I had to be both a mother and father figure for him while still being his big brother."

"Which nobody could have pulled off with complete success," Brock told him. "That's why you shouldn't be so hard on yourself for how Paul turned out. Just because your father was in another region didn't mean he couldn't still be in your lives…"

"I used to believe that," Reggie muttered, now unable to hide his bitter sentiments. "Once we got to Kanto, we were both really excited. Eventually we'd get to see him again after four years of barely hearing from him at all… but after I was approved to challenge the Battle Frontier after competing in the Indigo League and Paul rejoined me after getting his Turtwig in Sinnoh… well. The reunion was nothing like we imagined it would be."

The mention of Kanto made Brock dead certain that his suspicions were true now, beyond a reasonable doubt. "That must have been hard for you both," he sympathized. "I've got to ask this directly, Reggie… I think we've skirted around the subject long enough. It's Brandon, isn't it?"

Though Reggie had suspected Brock likely figured this out a while back, it was still shocking for him to hear the fellow breeder confront him with the truth verbally. All of the thoughtful gestures Brock made both during today's battle and the battle from ten days ago that Reggie noticed were indeed for the reasons he suspected. It took him a few moments to find his voice again, but Reggie resigned his attempts to dodge the subject and let out a defeated sigh.

"… Yeah. He's the one," Reggie confirmed, looking to Brock with pleading eyes. "Brock, I'm begging you, don't ever tell-"

"I already promised to keep this to myself," Brock assured. "Like I said, I'm not doing this for Ash. I've had the opportunity to speak with Paul one-on-one a couple of times before. The last time we spoke, I mentioned you… that seemed to let his guard down. I remembered seeing all your earned Gym Badges and Symbols in your house back when we visited you in Veilstone City, and while I didn't ask you about it back then, I noticed you had all but one of the Kanto Battle Frontier Symbols. It made me wonder why you'd quit after putting so much work into earning the others. When I mentioned it to Paul, his demeanor changed. Normally he's withdrawn and standoffish even when he does give me the time of day, but once I told him about the missing Brave Symbol in your collection, he suddenly became embittered and angry."

Reggie nodded, not surprised to hear this. "Normally Paul's good about putting up that "strong" front of his, but anything connected to Dad will set him off if he doesn't know when to expect it."

"That's when he told me he was determined to never be like you," Brock mentioned. "It was the first time I'd seen Paul react so strongly to anything in all the time I've known him. So if I could figure out why the Brave Symbol was such a sensitive topic for him, then…"

"Then you'd be able to figure him out," Reggie finished for him. "But even I feel like I don't know everything about him sometimes," he confessed. "And I should… what kind of brother doesn't-"

"Reggie, don't," Brock urged. "You've been there for your brother as much as you possibly could; I can tell how committed you've been. But Brandon…"

Unable to resist his own bitter sentiments, Reggie shook his head. "Since Mom died, I think he's been… feeling lost. But since he's so much like Paul…"

"I could tell," Brock cut in. "Their mannerisms are identical; the way Paul carried himself in today's battle was just like Brandon's disposition in the battle ten days ago."

"What's weird is that it's subconscious on Paul's end," Reggie told him. "I'm sure you could tell that he's not exactly on good terms with Brandon. He's hated me since I gave up being a trainer, but Paul's really gone out of his way to spite Brandon at every opportunity. Not that it changes anything… they're still really a lot alike."

Brock looked up at the sky thoughtfully, thinking of the not-so distant past events of his experience with the Kanto Battle Frontier. "Ash and I didn't start on the right foot with Brandon, either. He was much more stoic and reserved than the other Frontier Brains we met, and he was very quick to criticize Ash… Paul was the same way when we first met him."

"They're both pretty quick to judge a book by its cover," Reggie said with a hollow laugh. "Dad's always made a habit of pushing us both to our limits. His expectations were high, and though he believes we both have a lot of potential… he's usually not the encouraging type. I remember him being at least a little different before Mom died, but even then he was drawn more to Paul than he ever was to me."

"Favoritism," Brock acknowledged. "That's never a good thing…"

"I don't think he meant to do it on purpose," Reggie postulated; ever the forgiving type. "Besides, Mom was the same way, only she was closer to me. But we all loved each other the same … even Paul. Brandon raised him to be mean-spirited and aloof, but Paul was still very attached to both him and Mom. I did what I could to, well, "re-program" Paul's attitude once I was taking care of him, but…"

Brock looked to the side, taking everything in as it came. "It would be easier said than done," he finished for his acquaintance. "Brandon's got a powerful personality; since Paul was really young and impressionable while the family was still together, it would be almost impossible to change the course years after."

"It's my fault," Reggie blurted out, always ready and willing to take the blame for everything. "Paul's cruelty was bred by my failure to live up to Brandon's expectations. He thought I was too soft as a kid; he still thinks I'm too soft now… and that's what drove him to mold Paul into _his_ ideal son. He did that so Paul wouldn't grow up to be like me."

This was progressively harder for Brock to listen to, and he attempted to stop the self-hating tangent by uttering Reggie's name, but the elder Pokémon Breeder continued on.

"And it _worked;_ Paul grew up antagonizing his own big brother. Even though I was physically stronger, faster, and more resilient than him, Paul went out of his way to bully me around and was even crueler to anyone outside the family." Reggie was sounding more upset the longer he continued on; finally his own emotional restraints were breaking down under the pressure. "I did whatever I could to get him on the right track after we lost Mom… it seemed he was finally learning from me, but then I ruined everything I worked so hard for when we met Brandon again."

Though he wanted to urge Reggie to calm down, Brock had a feeling the breeder wouldn't heed his words. They had crossed some very sensitive territory now – territory that even Reggie couldn't withstand. "Was it really just the two of you alone taking care of each other since your mother died, Reggie?"

"We don't have any living extended family," Reggie said tiredly. "That's what Dad said, anyway. He had no choice but to move to Kanto to financially support us, but Paul and I… didn't want to leave Mom behind… if you know what I mean." Brock nodded, understanding the sentiments and allowed Reggie to continue. "I was on the last leg of my first journey when that happened, so Paul and I went through many regions far from home anyway, but… we always went back to Sinnoh after every League Conference. We knew Sinnoh was still our home… and I wanted to find a way to revive my mother's business somehow. I figured I'd find the answer once I conquered the Battle Frontier and defeated Dad. I wanted to close the book on that conflict and get him to see me as the worthy son he always wanted…"

"Which didn't work out," Brock recalled. "But if you wanted so badly to resolve your conflict with Brandon, why did you give up and retire after he beat you only once?"

"That question," Reggie answered; his expressions darkening. "Remember what he asked Paul during their battle, right before Paul completely lost his self-control?"

The will-breaking, stunning question the Pyramid King posed to his son at the midpoint of their battle…

_"All wrapped up in the past… But then why do you walk the Pokémon path in the first place? Tell me, why do you battle?"_

How could Brock forget?

"_Tell me right now… what are you fighting for?"_

"He… asked you the same question when you battled him, right?" Brock figured. When Reggie nodded back to him, the aspiring breeder took a moment for that to sink in. "I see. You didn't have an answer for him either, did you?"

"Not the answer he wanted," Reggie said, filled with regret. "It's a mystery how he's able to read me and Paul so well when he hardly spends time with us, but he was right to ask us what our purpose was. For anything you do, there's got to be a reason for it; something that drives you…"

Brock nodded in agreement. "I want to be a Pokémon Breeder because I knew I wasn't happy being the Pewter City Gym Leader," he confessed, though it wasn't surprising given how Brock described his life before Ash became part of it. "And while it was difficult taking care of all my siblings, it made me happy to see them happy… growing… prospering… and it's the same way for my Pokémon. But my future isn't set in stone," he realized. "Maybe one day I'll feel that being a Pokémon Breeder isn't the best possible career route for me, and something else may come along that will suit my talent better. But I'm not going to worry about that right now; I'll just stay the course until I achieve my goal or something more suitable comes my way."

"That's the right way to go about it," Reggie commended. "And I'm sure your friends and family will support you every step of the way no matter what happens."

"I'm thankful for that," Brock said with a smile. "But it sounds like you don't quite have that luxury."

While Reggie didn't want to make his family out to be terrible people, he couldn't hold back on the wretched truth after coming this far. "I was raised accepting that I'd have to live up to Dad's high expectations," he admitted. "We both were, but Paul was always an aggressive kid. Battling seemed to be a pretty obvious fit for him… sure, I may have been _decent_ at it, but I was doing it for the wrong reasons. That didn't occur to me while I was young, because back then I was determined to make Dad proud of me. Even before he became part of the Battle Frontier, Brandon was a notoriously strong trainer with a huge reputation in Sinnoh."

"So there was a lot of pressure on you and Paul to live up to the family name," Brock presumed. "Yeah, I can see where that would be misleading."

"That was what drove me from the beginning, but things changed a little after Mom passed on… that was the part that I was called out on, which really shocked me. Dad didn't stick around long after that happened, so I figured there was no way he could have known how my motivations changed..."

Examining Reggie's words carefully, Brock had only one question to ask. "How did they change?"

"I did still want to prove myself worthy to my father," Reggie was certain to make that much clear. "But after Mom was gone… it took a while for Paul to recover from that. He was only five when the family he grew up with was ripped apart. I was the only one left to care for him, and… I knew I had to make the best of it. So once Paul was under my care, he sort of… became my whole world. His morale kept me battling, but other than that…"

"You lost focus of your own needs," Brock deduced. "And you became oblivious of how your journey affected your own life. So you were just going through the motions of your battling years without thinking about what you really wanted to do for yourself."

"Yeah," Reggie affirmed; his voice becoming hollow. "And ever since Mom passed on, I'd often think about the fate of her business. All those baby Pokémon she cared for that no one else could… I didn't want the business to die with her. I was always thinking about how to save it… so I really was going through the motions for those four years. But it wasn't until after I traveled through four regions, qualified for each League Conference, and got through almost the entire Kanto Battle Frontier that I finally took a long, hard look at my own life… and I saw that Brandon was absolutely right. I had no business challenging the likes of him… because my true inner strength, that he wanted so badly to see from me… it had nothing to do with all that battling I did over the years, and it never would be."

It was disheartening for Brock to see Reggie still putting himself at fault for why his family life became even more complicated. But at the same time, it was a struggle for Brock to find an answer that would fix this mess and absolve Reggie of the guilt he felt.

But that didn't stop him from trying his best. "Reggie… I know earning your father's approval is very important to you. But I think you're not giving yourself enough credit. See, I have a friend who went through a similar scenario back when Ash and I traveled through Hoenn." Though the circumstances weren't nearly as dire with May, who was pushed into being a Pokémon Trainer by her Gym Leader father but ultimately chose to pursue Pokémon Contests instead, it was still a fitting example to compare with Reggie's problem. "For a while her only motivation was her love of traveling and she didn't care much for Pokémon at all; she was just willing to endure that part of the journey to travel to her heart's desire. Of course, her feelings changed drastically over time and now she's fully dedicated to her Pokémon and realized what her true calling was. Even though her desires didn't match up with her father's, who was a Gym Leader, he was still supportive of her decision. Without hesitation, her parents supported her however they could… because they understood that the needs of their daughter were greater than what they thought was best for her."

"They… sound like really good parents," Reggie quietly muttered, feeling his often-repressed jealousy well up within him. "I'm glad everything worked out well for your friend… she must have been under a lot of pressure at first."

"That's right," Brock affirmed. "The reason I'm telling you this is because I honestly believe you're not deserving of all the blame you've put on yourself. You think you made a mistake by giving up on defeating Brandon because of how that affected Paul, but do you really believe things would have turned out better if you forced yourself to continue down the path that you know makes you unhappy? Who's to say Paul would have turned out any better…?"

"Guess there's no way to know for sure," Reggie figured; he hadn't really thought of the matter from this perspective before. "Not unless I did challenge Dad again and defeated him." After an awkward pause, Reggie decided to concede another truth to Brock that Paul wouldn't have allowed. "And actually… my training with Paul wasn't just for his sake. It was also for mine."

Brock wasn't following quite yet. "Yours? But… how?"

"About two months ago, Dad sent me a letter," Reggie told him. "He very rarely makes contact with me or Paul; only when something big is happening with his life. Like when he caught Regirock, Registeel, and Regice… this time he was going after Regigigas. He wanted to celebrate by giving me another chance to defeat him once he captured Regigigas, and he gave Paul a similar invitation."

"Even after you put your foot down and made your choice about which path you were taking with your life, Brandon _still_ insisted that you should battle him?" To Brock, this seemed like a very insensitive thing for the Pyramid King to do.

Reggie shook his head. "It's not like that… I think Dad had my best interests in mind. I've chosen my path, but… I still regret not being able to give my father the great battle he deserved to see from his son. For all the harsh decisions he's made that's made my life and Paul's so difficult… Dad's still hurting, too. I want to do what I can to remind him that he isn't alone in this… and…"

Brock remained firm as he listened. "And?"

"I know it's sort of selfish on my part, but… I want _closure_," Reggie confessed. "I want to show Dad that I _can_ be what he wants me to be, even if that's not what I want and won't conform to. Every time I see my accomplishments on the mantle at home, it… bothers me. My incomplete set of Frontier Symbols has been stuck in the back of my mind for years… and I think there's only one way to handle it."

"So you still want to win the Brave Symbol," Brock understood. "After all these years…"

"_Just_ to close the book on that part of my life for good," Reggie clarified, feeling he had to force the words out of his mouth. "One more battle, this time I'll _win_, and then I'm returning to my life… and I'll never have to look back again."

Brock took a moment for this to sink in. As he suspected, there truly were more complexities to Paul and Reggie's life than he could have possibly anticipated. At the very least, Brock was satisfied to know what exactly troubled Paul so much; it gave him hope that perhaps Ash and his rival could come to an understanding someday despite their differences. Though now Brock could see how truly different Ash and Paul were. Even more than their clashing philosophies on Pokémon, their very lives were at opposites. Perhaps, then, the two rivals coming to a mutual understanding would be harder than he thought. But it certainly didn't seem to be _impossible_, and that was enough for Brock.

"In that case… I wish you the best, Reggie," Brock said; his sincerity in his statement well apparent. "You're strong enough to not let your father or brother's expectations run your life anymore, and settling your unfinished business with Brandon is a very admirable thing to do. I know it won't be easy."

"Definitely," Reggie concurred. "Especially after seeing the battle between him and Paul… Dad hasn't changed a bit. He's much stronger now than when I battled him years back, but that's the only difference. So to even stand a chance, I have to get back into the mindset of the kind of trainer I used to be. On top of that, I've got to go _beyond_ my prime, because that wasn't nearly enough to faze Dad four years ago."

"There's no way of knowing just how much further you have to go," Brock realized. "Brandon will keep getting stronger right along with you." A thought hit the aspiring Pokémon Breeder as he mumbled, "Though without his Regis…" He looked to Reggie and spoke up again. "Did Brandon tell you about what happened to his Pokémon?"

Reggie nodded, somber as he easily remembered that day barely over a week ago and how worried he was for his father's safety before finding out what had happened. "Yeah," he quietly replied. "Paul and I actually spotted pillars of smoke rising up from around where we had just come from while we were driving back to Snowpoint City. We turned around to figure out what happened, but we were too late to be of any help. Dad told us everything that night…" He decided against telling Brock of the drama that followed this confession, mainly stemming from Paul, but rightly so as the incident threatened the family's future financial stability. After everything Reggie had confessed to this point, he felt there was no need to continue needlessly piling his problems onto Brock.

"Then you know that Regirock, Registeel, Regice, and Regigigas are no longer a concern for you," Brock pointed out.

"That doesn't make Dad any less of a challenge," Reggie countered, shaking his head. "Believe me, for all the decades he's been a trainer, I know for a fact he has other Pokémon that can match the power of the Regis. How do you think Dad managed to _capture_ them in the first place?"

Apparently Brock hadn't thought of that; so much for his logical attempt to reassure Reggie of his chances. "Good point," he conceded. "You wouldn't happen to know what else he has that could have captured them, do you? His Ninjask, Solrock, and Dusclops didn't seem like they were on par with the Regis, even though I've seen how strong they were when Ash battled them."

"There's only one Pokémon of his I know of that is definitely equal to the level of the Regis beyond a shadow of a doubt," Reggie said, "That would be his first."

"His starter," Brock realized. "Of course. But which-"

"I'll let you figure that one out on your own," Reggie decided, smirking as he stood up. "But I'll say this much: Dad's starter had a pretty easy time weakening two of the three Regis. Only the last one gave him some trouble, mostly because Dad was at a big disadvantage. My starter might stand a chance against his for that same reason, but the odds are evened out through a certain advantage his starter has over mine that's not as obvious. So I'd better keep my guard up and not make the mistake of underestimating that opponent if it comes down to our first Pokémon."

Brock nodded as he stood up moments later. "If you insist. I'll sleep on it and figure it out one of these days. Say, if your rematch happens after the Sinnoh League, Ash and I might just be in the neighborhood. Assuming your rematch will take place where your original battle started, that is."

Reggie nodded, putting on an earnest smile. "If it's convenient for you, by all means, you're invited to come to the Battle Frontier and watch. I'm sure Dad would enjoy seeing you again, and having witnesses to our battle would be all the better." He winked just then. "And even if Paul says no, you're welcome to watch his rematch, too."

"Sounds good," Brock agreed. "I'm interested to see how well you both do, and I'm sure Ash would never pass up the chance to see either of you in action. You can count on us being there to cheer you both on."

"I appreciate it, really," Reggie thanked, finally starting to head off towards his car. "Until that time, I guess it's goodbye for now. We'll look forward to seeing you guys… and do tell Ash that I wish him luck in the Sinnoh League. I know he'll bounce back from this for sure, and I'd love to see him and Paul battle again."

Brock was more than happy to comply. "Will do. And I promise I won't tell a soul about everything you wanted to keep confidential."

Reggie nodded, easily finding the aspiring breeder trustworthy. "Thanks. I'd better start heading back to Veilstone City now. I've been gone far too long; much longer than I planned to."

"At this hour?" Brock wondered quietly to himself, noticing the star-covered dark sky above them. But if Reggie was pressed for time, he could understand why there was an urgent need to begin the long journey back home. He was well aware just how far away they were from Veilstone City right now. "Alright; be safe, Reggie," Brock said with a smile.

With the reassuring smile returned, Reggie waved a farewell to the first person he could confide in for years. "Same to you guys. Until next time…"

"Seeya, Reggie…"

Brock waved back as Reggie turned away and finally walked off, strolling straight towards his van while mentally preparing himself for a long drive back home. The Breeder-to-be sighed to himself, feeling content with how the conversation went.

"I knew there had to be more to Paul and Reggie than they were letting on," Brock said to himself. Though he hadn't quite anticipated such a heavy, complicated load of information that explained why Paul was the way he was, Brock couldn't be too surprised about that. He was simply satisfied to have his suspicions confirmed, so the aspiring breeder would no longer have to occupy his mind wondering about them. At a time like this, Brock knew he needed to focus on Ash now.

Looking briefly towards Lake Acuity one more time, Brock turned around to make his way back to the Pokémon Center where Ash and Dawn were spending the night. "Knowing is half the battle…" was the last thing Brock said to himself before leaving the area.

Just after Brock left, however, a gentle glow of a golden hue emitted from underneath Lake Acuity's waters. A peculiar creature – certainly a Pokémon – slowly and quietly emerged from the depths to stare at an object of its sudden and particular interest: the teenager who was now barely within visible range.

It had heard the entire discussion; the soft sounds disrupting its dormant state. As a creature of wisdom, it was engrossed in the nearby conversation. Its extraordinary mental prowess enabled the tiny being to hear every word clearly despite being several feet underwater. As the object of this Pokémon's interest vanished in the distance, the mystical creature itself slowly descended into Lake Acuity once more. Though uncertain of how or why, this Pokémon felt a unique bond with the human and remained intrigued.

The tiny guardian of Lake Acuity somehow knew it would see Brock again in the near future; hence it returned to its slumber underneath the water until that time would come.

* * *

The following day, while Ash busied himself licking the wounds of his shattered ego from the full battle, Paul's self-confidence was born anew. As much as a disaster most of his time in Snowpoint City had been, Paul had learned many valuable lessons… most were learned the hard way, but the important thing was that Paul would be able to better himself as a trainer and a human being through those lessons.

He knew now that there was no point in fighting against something he could do nothing about – his illness. Paul wasn't going to distract himself (for now) with hoping some miracle would be bestowed upon him and eradicate the ailment; he simply had to accept and learn to live with it. When the time was right, he would tell his family the truth, but until then, Paul saw no reason to make his brother or father fret over something they were powerless against. The enlightened trainer would from now on take care of himself like he should have done in the first place and not stubbornly defy his fate by taking unnecessary risks. Paul promised himself that he would no longer use his disease as an excuse for his own careless mistakes.

While not expecting this to be a problem, Paul realized through his father that he couldn't afford to let his emotions run wild in the midst of battle. He had spent so much time suppressing his emotions _all_ the time that his guard became easy to break in tight situations. Paul might have taken the lesson a bit too literally, not yet seeing the faults of having no emotion whatsoever in a battle since it worked so well against Ash, but with time perhaps he'd find a medium. Similarly related, Paul learned that he did not hate his father – not completely, anyway. Despite all the pent-up rage he expressed towards Brandon, simply spending time with him made Paul feel at ease. He didn't feel this at all when Brandon first appeared in Sinnoh to be with Reggie in his time of need. However, back then Brandon made it clear that his return to Sinnoh was purely for business purposes and would be back in Kanto once that business was finished. Reuniting with the family was entirely circumstantial, as he likely wouldn't have paid his sons a visit if Byron hadn't told him what happened. Knowing this, Paul only held contempt against the Pyramid King for seeming to assume one quick visit to his family for the first time in seven years (as their meeting four years prior was also purely for business and really had nothing to do with Paul himself) would make up for his absence in their lives when even the one visit didn't last more than a few hours. Brandon even humiliated him in public just for the sake of business then in regards to the Regigigas book Paul was intentionally keeping away from him.

Paul remembered being surprised when Brandon conceded to a battle if they would be able to meet in Snowpoint City during his business trip. He masked that surprise with more indignation, but he was determined to make this battle happen no matter what. Though the resulting battle nearly broke Paul's spirit, thinking back on it, Paul felt slightly appreciated that Brandon would put his business on hold even when he was within grasp of his long-sought after goal just to battle with his son, who by official means didn't even earn the right to do so. Though his loss was the most devastating one he ever felt, hearing Brandon actually _praise_ him afterwards had a major effect: normally Brandon wouldn't praise how well his challenger trained their Pokémon and the like, but the Pyramid King was compelled to make up for the mental warfare he waged on his son to easily win the battle, after all this time of not being there for his son to tell him how he really thought about his progression. The biggest challenge of that battle for Brandon was to communicate that in a way that didn't give away their relation; another thing he did solely because Paul didn't want the spectators to know that secret he was keeping from them.

His father had been so unreliable over the years that Paul struggled to bring himself to trust the man, but keeping the secret safe _and_ giving Paul some professional fatherly advice no other challenger would have received to that extent made the embittered son subconsciously realize that Brandon really _did_ care for him. While it was rough dealing with the still unresolved matter of what drove Paul to battle that didn't relate to his desire to prove a point to his family and surpass them, Paul understood this was something he _needed_ to realize and take some time to re-evaluate what drove him to become a Pokémon Trainer. When he and Reggie realized something had gone wrong with Brandon's mission at the Snowpoint Temple, Paul found himself _worrying_ about his father's wellbeing; he didn't even try to hide it. He was visibly upset upon finding out about the risks Brandon was taking if his mission failed (which it did), and despite the Frontier Brain's instruction, Paul continued to worry about what his father was going to do from here. He couldn't help it; there were severe potential ramifications on the family's stability if Brandon couldn't find an alternative to please the Battle Frontier committee.

But Paul knew he couldn't let this issue cloud his mind and distract him from his own mission. Things hadn't turned for the worst just yet; there was still time, and even Paul couldn't deny that Brandon was an incredibly gifted person who could turn any kind of situation around. As long as there was still an opportunity for Brandon to make things work out, then Paul simply had to trust his father would be able to do so. It was now much easier for Paul to have faith in his father; the ten-day period in which he trained for his upcoming battle with Ash had a major impact on how Paul viewed the Pyramid King now. The two managed to have a civil one-on-one conversation and Brandon was even around a few times to monitor his son's progress. He was even there for moral support, during the first day of training when Paul could no longer suppress the agony and stress he held within himself for so many weeks and broke out into a miserable sobbing fit. Brandon normally would have scolded his son for being so weak to actually cry, but he couldn't bring himself to do so this time. He didn't utter any comforting words, either, but he didn't really need to. Just being there for Paul when he was at his lowest was enough for his youngest son; it reminded him that he wasn't alone, even though it usually felt that way with his family being fragmented as it was. When the family came together and business had nothing to do with it, Paul was able to feel the love. He felt the comfort he had longed for after all of the misfortunes that befell him. There were still unresolved matters Paul had to figure out on his own, and he actually hadn't fully forgiven his father just yet, but the family made a major collective step forward in the process of mending the ties between them all.

He had learned many things through Reggie while being here in the frigid northern tip of Sinnoh. Through battle, Paul had realized that Reggie already surpassed him in skill and strength. The harsh defeat Paul's Torterra suffered against Reggie's Infernape proved that the younger brother needed serious work on connecting with his Pokémon on a deeper level; a level he was uncomfortable to experience. Paul avoided getting too close with his Pokémon for years, based on spite to do everything his brother _didn't_ do and his seemingly phobic aversion to the concept of being close with _anyone_ besides his brother (whom he still kept at a distance most of the time). Upon meeting Ash, whose methods were very similar to Reggie's, Paul was even less inclined to really get to know his Pokémon on anything other than a professional level. Finding out about Ash's victory over Kanto's Battle Frontier (including defeating his father; all this happening before they even met) was still a hard revelation for Paul to swallow. The frustration that stemmed from his incompatibility with the Chimchar he once owned didn't help matters either, and while Paul was able to not let the matter of Ash now having his Chimchar bother him, the battles following the switch in ownership seemed to be giving Paul a subtle warning. Seeing Ash trigger Chimchar's hidden powers within its Blaze ability (which Paul could never once do) and now witnessing its long-awaited evolution to Monferno during their full battle, Paul could no longer deny that Ash was making progress with the troubled little Fire-type and felt that all the mistreatment he inflicted upon that Pokémon would come back with some dire consequences, courtesy of bad karma.

Somehow, Paul's recent struggles didn't feel like a consequence of that karma; simply misfortune. But perhaps another form of karma had a role in it involving someone else Paul had wronged along the journey through his home region: a witty traveling companion named Conway. A fellow teen Pokémon Trainer who was once considered a friend, whom Paul left stranded on a desolate, blizzard-ravaged route. All simply because he jumped to a conclusion without even giving his companion the opportunity to get a word in edgewise. Paul wanted to think he did the right thing, betrayed as he felt by Conway failing him just like everyone else close to him had failed him in the past. Despite the strong, indignant front Paul put up against Conway, on the inside he was deeply hurt; he couldn't control his emotions to listen to reason.

… In a way, these lessons are all connected together. The disease, the PokéRinger competition, and the treacherous journey to Snowpoint City (including the embarrassing failure of a Gym Battle) kept Paul's mind off of Conway for the most part, because some part of him began to wonder if his actions were truly justified. While Paul was good about pushing those doubts to the very back of his mind, the thoughts in retrospect actually _considering_ the circumstances of Conway's dilemma (namely the trauma of being kidnapped, dubious consent of unspeakable acts with the enemy, _and_ the near brush with untimely death all happening to him within the span of less than an hour) would not fade away no matter how much Paul tried to take the matter off his mind. Becoming extremely sick and marred with injuries, Paul became irrational and attempted to turn those feelings of doubt into spite. The battle against Candice proved this was a bad move.

Only by confessing the truth of their separation to Reggie did Paul come to accept that he had done something horrible. He had wronged Conway, the first human being Paul regarded as a friend. Having accepted that he was in the wrong, Paul felt he needed to make it up to Conway. He wasn't sure how, had no idea where he was or what he was doing at this point two weeks after the separation, but Paul's mind was made up.

Once he defeated Candice and earned his seventh badge, Paul decided to look for Conway while heading for his final Gym Battle destination on the other side of the region. It wouldn't be easy, but Paul felt he owed it to Conway to at least try to find him and make amends. And to think, Paul was completely oblivious to what had happened to Conway after their separation and what he was doing now.

But for now, Paul had to focus. With Conway's master strategy in hand, Paul looked it over one last time before entering the Snowpoint Gym. Instead of rebelling against Conway's advice, he would follow and honor it.

* * *

Candice was already informed ahead of time of when Paul would reschedule their rematch, so she was immediately available to perform her duty as Gym Leader. The two trainers' greetings toward each other were brief, as both were eager to begin the true battle Paul intended to have since he came to Snowpoint City. The competitors took their places at the opposite ends of the icy battlefield, Pokéballs in hand as they waited for the formalities from the referee, Mr. Honcho, to conclude.

"The rematch between Gym Leader Candice and Veilstone City's Paul is ready to begin!" he announced. "A four-on-four match; the victor will be determined when one side's Pokémon are all defeated! There is no time limit and only the challenger may substitute Pokémon. With that said, let the battle be-"

"_WAIT!"_

A desperate shrill voice echoed from the hallway of the Snowpoint Gym, disrupting the referee and catching the attention of both contenders. Paul found the sound of the voice familiar as he turned around to confirm his suspicion. Candice also recognized the voice, but smiled brightly to contrast Paul's frowning.

"So slow, Zozo," Candice teased. "I was about to think you were gonna forget about the battle you asked me if you could watch!"

Not minding the playful chiding, Zoey took a moment to slump over to catch her breath before facing the battlefield. "Sorry, Miss Senior," she apologized. "I lost track of time while I was packing my things; I told you I was going back out to travel today, didn't I?"

"Ah, right! I remember now," the Gym Leader affirmed. "Hard to believe it's been two weeks already since you came back. You'll totally be missed for sure, but it's alright. Next time you come back, it'll be as a Top Coordinator, right?"

The vote of confidence brought a smile out of Zoey. "Definitely," she agreed. "I've rested up long enough; now nobody's gonna stop me from making it to the Grand Festival." Then she turned her attention to the clearly annoyed Paul. "And what's your deal? I haven't even said anything to you yet."

"Why are you here?" Paul's question was straightforward, par for the course whenever he was annoyed and/or impatient.

While Zoey came to learn that Paul wasn't _quite_ as bad as he seemed to be the day she met him, in her opinion, he was still pretty bad. Based on what she learned about Paul from Dawn and her friends, Zoey cared too much for her childhood friend to disregard this battle. Brock wasn't the only one interested in finding out what made Paul tick, after all.

"I'm here because she's my best friend," she sternly replied, gesturing to the Gym Leader. "And since I ran into you over a week ago, there was something about you I _really_ didn't like. I'll admit you're pretty skilled at battling, but after that blow-up you had with Brandon… well, let's just say I'm here to make sure your anger issues don't go out of control again and take it out on Miss Senor here."

Zoey didn't really explain her intentions to Candice, hence the spunky Ice-type specialist quietly chuckled, clearly flattered. "Oh, Zozo. There you go worrying again! Believe me, you've got nothing to worry about," she assured with a wink. Candice was not worried in the least, of course, because she had gotten to know Paul on her own time that she faithfully kept to herself. While Paul's behavior during his battle with Brandon startled her, Candice knew those outbursts of rage weren't the signs of a troublemaker. No, Paul was simply a troubled person. Being one of the few to know of the lethal burden Paul had to carry for the rest of his life and witnessing his behavior before and after he had to accept said burden, Candice could tell this young man was not a bad person.

"There's no reason for you to be here," Paul followed up. "If you've got your own journey to resume, stop wasting your time here and get going."

"Yeah right; as if the battle's gonna last that long before Candice defeats you," Zoey said; a smug smirk on her face now apparent. "That's something I still want to see before I go, even if there is nothing to worry about."

"You don't mind, do you, Paul?" Candice asked, feeling a little guilty for not informing her challenger about this ahead of time. Then again, based on Paul's reactions in the past regarding others who wanted to see his battle, it seemed he couldn't have cared less whether there were any witnesses to his battle or not.

Normally that was true, but this time Paul simply wasn't in the mood for a peanut gallery. Still, by now Paul felt this had been dragged out long enough and he wanted his seventh badge earned _today_, no matter what. If that meant having to deal with the company of a girl he didn't care for, then Paul was willing to tolerate her company as best he could.

"Do what you want," Paul answered. Though his tone was neutral, the cold and callous nuances remained audible. "It's your gym; I'm just here to battle. Nothing else matters."

Candice smiled uneasily before nodding to Zoey. "Guess that means you're free to stay, Zozo. Go ahead and take a seat."

"Got it," Zoey said, smirking as she made her way over to choose a seat. Naturally, she was inclined to sit at Candice's end of the stadium, but the aspiring Pokémon Coordinator continued to keep a close eye on Paul. "Kick his butt, Miss Senior!"

"We'll see about that," Candice said, making no promises. "Time for a _real_ kiai battle! You ready, Paul?"

Paul nodded as he took out his first Pokéball, silently staring at it for a moment to recall Conway's strategy before looking to Mr. Honcho. "Anything else you needed to say?"

"Only one thing," the referee said as he shook his head. "Challenger, the first move is yours."

With the battle officially underway, Paul set his eyes on Candice before throwing his Pokéball. Since the spunky Gym Leader was taking him seriously this time, Paul assumed she wouldn't throw out her Abomasnow first like before. It was fairly obvious then that Abomasnow was her signature, so Paul had the advantage of knowing exactly what Candice's trump card was and how to counter it. Still, it was him underestimating Candice in the first place that led to the disastrous loss from their first battle, so Paul set himself on taking _all_ of his opponent's Pokémon seriously.

"Very well. Honchkrow, stand by for battle!"

Candice couldn't resist smirking at the sight of the Big Boss Pokémon seeking redemption from its own losing streak. It had lost to Conway in the final Contest battle, to Ash at the PokéRinger competition, and to Candice after taking only three hits of damage. On top of that, it had lost numerous times to various members of Reggie's team during the ten-day period in which the brothers trained in preparation for the full battle with Ash. It was going to take more than one good performance from there to make up for its mistakes, and Honchkrow knew this. Luckily, Honchkrow's strength and resilience was much improved thanks to the training, so this and remembering way back when Weavile – a Pokémon with much more pitiful defenses than it – managed to pull out a win against Steel-typed Pokémon that otherwise would have torn it in half, the weakness to Ice-type Pokémon Honchkrow was about to face didn't seem nearly as daunting as it once did. Of course, it was also reassuring to be aware that Paul actually knew what he was doing here, unlike the last time.

It was hard to resist making a comment on the fact that Paul was using Honchkrow again, but Candice was not one to ever break a promise if she could help it. Even if it meant keeping a secret from her closest friend, Candice knew the circumstances of Paul's situation warranted that. Instead, she settled on making similar comments like she did before. "A Flying-type, huh? I don't see those being used here against me very much," she coyly said. "Good thing I like surprises."

"Surprise is right," Zoey mumbled to herself while peering down at the plump black bird on the field. "Does he really think Miss Senior's gonna be that easy to beat?"

Paul refused to respond, keeping himself evened out and level-headed as he awaited what else Candice had up her sleeve besides Abomasnow.

"Alright, alright, I gotcha," Candice understood. "Time to get down for business! " She threw her first Pokéball accordingly. "Sneasel, let's get going…!"

As expected, Candice did not send out Abomasnow first this time. While Zoey smirked at the sight of this match-up, knowing full well her friend had this Sneasel and was likely to use it in response to a Dark/Flying-typed opponent. Paul refrained from making any sort of gesture and expected to be at a disadvantage here; naturally, since the Gym Leader had the element of surprise on her side, it would only make sense for Candice to make use of it. However, inwardly, Paul was struck with a small surprise; one of how unexpectedly familiar this felt.

It didn't take long for Paul to realize why he felt that sense of déjà vu: Candice had actually revealed this Pokémon to him before. The circumstances of the Gym Leader doing this weren't the usual kind; this happened a short while after Paul lost to her in their first battle. Right after losing, Paul's disease finally outclassed the power of his self-control and had to be admitted to the city's hospital immediately. It was there when Paul had nowhere to run from facing his grim own grim reality, which caused him to go AWOL the second he had the strength to do so. He took refuge in a bathroom stall, needing the peace and quiet and solitude in order to come to terms with this life-changing news. That moment of meditation was interrupted by a pity-driven Candice, who had come to visit Paul (naturally worried for him given the state he was in after their battle).

Paul had no patience for the teenage girl who had just humiliated him in battle (even if she had good intentions for visiting) and was now involved with the people in the hospital who sought to take him away from his little refuge and force him back into the world of chaos now wreaked upon him. He resorted to drastic measures – feigning suicidal behavior – to get rid of the Gym Leader. It partially worked; the hollow threats did get Candice to leave the area and allow Paul a few more moments of peace and solitude before he was finally apprehended by the hospital staff. However, since Candice believed in Paul's ruse, she was too fearful to truly leave him on his own and the two settled on a compromise before she left… and that was to leave the only Pokémon quick enough to intercept an attempt at suicide: her Sneasel.

Thankfully for Sneasel, it never needed to stop Paul from doing anything crazy. So the entire time, Paul and Candice's Sneasel remained in close quarters, but separated by a bathroom stall; the two never even got a proper look at each other. Luckily for Paul, he didn't need to get to know Candice's Sneasel. His own Weavile was caught in its pre-evolved form and remained a Sneasel until Paul's twelfth birthday when Brandon gave his son a Razor Claw. That gave Paul plenty of time during his Johto journey to learn the differences between the two related species.

The only thing that stood out in Candice's Sneasel was the short, stubby red feather protruding from its left ear. Paul remembered his Sneasel's feather being much larger and longer, resembling a full wing. This made one detail clear right away: Candice's Sneasel was female. Paul only hoped this Sneasel didn't know the move Attract; a simple status move like that had the potential of making the entire plan Conway constructed null and void and effectively dooming Paul's team of all-male Pokémon. Flirtatious girls like Candice seemed to have preferences for moves that matched their nature, so Paul felt this to be a genuine concern. Hopefully luck would work in his favor this time… the past couple of months or so brought enough bad luck to Paul to cover the rest of the year.

With that revelation out of the way, it was time to finally start the battle.

"Honchkrow, use Haze!" Following Conway's written suggestions, the first order of business was to buffer the disadvantage as much as possible in order to even out the odds. Paul at first disagreed with such an idea, but not so much nowadays, having grown all the wiser after a string of disheartening defeats. Admittedly the first draft of Conway's plan involved entirely different move sets for the majority of Paul's Pokémon, but the strategy was tweaked accordingly throughout the entire time the two traveled together, which naturally resulted in alterations to the set of moves that were planned to be used in this scenario. At the time Paul found it annoying of Conway to nitpick at an already-completed strategy, but it became clear to him now that this was a sign showing how much Conway valued their friendship. Paul had always judged him on how useful he would be _to him_ as a traveling companion.

Only now did Paul realize how short-sighted and selfish that was of him. Conway knew it all along, but rather than calling his friend out on his behavior, he catered to Paul's wishes with nary a complaint; that was how much friendship mattered to Conway. He was the one who understood what the word "friendship" actually meant. Now it was time for Paul to come to terms with the concept, which was why he decided to rely on his former companion's instructions rather than go by his own instinct again.

As Honchkrow obscured most of the battlefield with thick black smoke, Zoey grumbled in frustration as she squinted in an attempt to see through it. "Sure," she muttered. "Make it so that I can't even see the fight. Nice one, Paul."

That wasn't Paul's intention, but he'd have preferred to not have Zoey here at all, so preventing her from being able to view the battle was fine by him. Honchkrow's Haze was so thick that the two trainers could not see each other, meaning Paul was not able to see the smirk on Candice's face as she and her Sneasel stood their ground.

"Pretty clever move to use," the Gym Leader remarked. "If you were facing any Pokémon other than Sneasel, that is."

"Keep it up, Honchkrow," Paul commanded briefly before addressing Candice. "You're going to explain something, aren't you?"

Sneasel still hadn't moved from its stationary position, waiting for Candice's order, but knew why Candice hadn't ordered an attack yet.

"I can see you're having Honchkrow use Haze to lower the visibility on the field. Believe me, where I live, I've dealt with blizzards and fog so thick I could hardly see the back of my own hand!" Candice sounded proud of that, but her bubbly demeanor sobered down into sheer confidence that Paul was making a major mistake here. "Yeah, it's a good plan to make it harder for my Pokémon to hit yours given your disadvantage. But trying to do that with Sneasel is a waste of time because…"

Paul grew tired of the talkative Gym Leader quickly; no wonder he underestimated her before. "Because…"

"Sneasel's ability is Keen Eye!" Candice shouted out suddenly. "You can't affect its accuracy in any way!"

Not even giving Paul a second to react, Candice finally went on the offensive. "Sneasel, use Ice Beam!"

Indeed, despite the low visibility range across the battlefield, Sneasel's aim was precise and struck Honchkrow with a super-effective stream of ice. Honchkrow's continued Haze was cut off as the Big Boss Pokémon was tossed back to its side of the battlefield and set on a collision course towards the solid ice terrain not too far away from where Paul stood.

Paul grimaced at the sight, but refused to let this setback shake him. Ideally he would have wanted Honchkrow to dodge the attack, but knowing his choice Flying-type was built more for bulk and strength rather than speed and agility (especially compared to other Flying-types like Ash's Staraptor) made this outcome inevitable. With Honchkrow knocked down, the massive Haze cloud would dissipate before long. It was a bit of a mistake on Paul's part to forget about Sneasel's ability; something he normally wouldn't let escape his memory since he raised the same species. However, abilities within certain Pokémon changed upon evolving, and Weavile was such a case, as its ability was now Pressure – a far less useful ability, in Paul's opinion. That and thoughtlessly following through with Conway's plan without taking time to account for potential counters resulted in this error… although, there was another reason to abuse Haze this early on; it would just have to clear out before it could be seen that the move served in its secondary function.

"Sorry to waste your efforts there!" Candice cheerfully apologized. "But you're not gonna defeat Sneasel with eye tricks. If you wanna beat me, you're gonna have to do it head-on with all your kiai might!"

By now Honchkrow had recovered from the hit it took and took flight again, awaiting Paul's next order.

Sky Attack was a very strong move that would quickly cripple Sneasel, but it required a charge time and wouldn't have the opportunity to launch before the Sharp Claw Pokémon would intercept the attack with its own. Paul had another move in mind, but decided to hold off until later for it since it would likely be the best Honchkrow could do against its opponent short of a successful hit from Sky Attack. That left only one option, and not a very attractive one given the type it was. However, Paul knew both Sneasel and Weavile had _terrible_ defenses, especially in special defense. Even if it wouldn't be effective, chipping down even small bits of Sneasel's health would be a good way as any to start out.

"Alright, Honchkrow," Paul calmly told his Pokémon as he made his decision. "Use Shadow Ball!"

Without hesitation, the Big Boss Pokémon fired off the Ghost-type attack with accurate precision despite the still-lingering Haze. However…

"Sneasel, dodge it!"

Candice's Pokémon was definitely trained to make the best use of its incredible speed and dodged the ball of energy with ease. The attack instead collided into one of the ice stalagmites that protruded from the solid-ice battlefield. The stalagmite shattered into pieces upon impact; with Haze losing its potency each passing second, Paul was able to faintly see the large amount of debris Shadow Ball left in its wake. It wasn't because of the lingering traces of Haze that made the debris hard to see – rather, it was due to the fact that the debris closely matched the color of the field it was scattered over: _black_.

Paul smirked. This was exactly what he was counting on; if Haze couldn't affect Sneasel's accuracy, it could at least affect the coloration of the ice if it was consistently used, which it had been. Untainted, ice refracted light quite well. That was why it was so easy to distinguish the stalagmites, other structures, and even small pieces of debris made of ice from the floor even though all pure forms of ice like the kind used in Candice's gym was colorless. Light was still able to pass through ice, giving off the illusion of color, and the stadium lights that hung high over the battlefield were more than powerful enough to make every bit of the stadium well-lit.

However, the black mist emitting from Honchkrow's Haze had a component of water within it, and ice was literally water itself, only solid. This made it easy for Haze to actually stick on any ice it made contact with. A dark color like black, if it was saturated well enough into the ice, could prevent any light from passing through at all.

It was from this that Paul finally had a true strategy to work with despite his disadvantage.

"Oh, gross," Candice remarked with disgust. "You're tainting my battlefield! It's like the roads of Snowpoint City at rush hour during a snowstorm. Those polluting cars and the dirty roads make the snow all dark and slushy… and then that nasty stuff freezes over the roads afterwards and makes it a danger zone for anyone driving over it!"

"You're talking about black ice," Paul noted with a smirk. "Honchkrow, keep using Shadow Ball!"

Candice hadn't quite seen the writing on the wall yet and stuck with her usual strategy. "Sneasel, keep dodging!"

Sneasel continued skating along the ice regardless of what was being done to it from Haze, bobbing and weaving between the remaining ice boulders and stalagmites which became the eventual targets of Honchkrow's attacks. One by one, they shattered into thousands of pieces, eventually littering the entire battlefield with icy debris. Though coated black on the outside, the broken bits of the structures showed the pure, untainted ice that the Haze could not permeate. Once everything had been destroyed with a Shadow Ball attack, there remained only one final step to complete his plan.

"That Honchkrow of yours might be a crack shot against most Pokémon, but it's got nothing on my Sneasel!" Candice coyly taunted.

Paul chose to ignore it. "Now, use Haze one more time!"

As the Big Boss Pokémon scattered its black mist across the entire battlefield as a finishing touch to Paul's plan, Zoey watched on looking every bit as confused as her mentor. "What kind of plan _is_ this?" she wondered out loud. "He knows there's no point in using that move when Sneasel's on the field. It doesn't matter how thick that mist gets; Sneasel's gonna see right through it!"

After a moment, Candice came to a conclusion and smiled, nodding her head. "I see. You're out of options, aren't you? Just biding your time like every other trainer who brings in a Flying-type against me… you do remember you're free to switch out, right?"

"Of course," Paul replied, sounding every bit as smug as his opponent. "Now's a good time to do that." He took out Honchkrow's Pokéball and held it up high. "Honchkrow, return!"

This was another lesson of humility Paul had learned the hard way between his battle with Byron and the battle he was having right now. Even after forcing a type disadvantage on his whole team, Paul refused to switch out any of his Pokémon at any given time despite being allowed to. Since Conway witnessed this battle, he made a note in his written strategy for Paul that he shouldn't be so proudly stubborn like he was back then, and allow for his team to switch out when the circumstances called for it.

Conway's directions had nothing regarding Paul's plan on affecting the battlefield with Haze, however. That was entirely Paul's idea; Conway wouldn't have known how to make a strategy based around affecting a battlefield he's never seen before. This was a comfortable medium for Paul to be in: he was being humble and considerate by being faithful to the plans Conway worked hard to make for his friend – at the same time not being entirely reliant on it. Paul was still allowed to put his own spin on an idea depending on the situation, which was how doing the gym battle this way became much easier for Paul to bear.

"_Finally_," Zoey grumbled while Honchkrow was recalled. "What was even the point of all that, anyway? His next Pokémon better actually start the battle… this just turned out to be a Contest Appeal gone horribly wrong."

Even if Zoey had been speaking loud enough to be heard, Paul would have tuned her out anyway. He threw the next Pokéball… "Ursaring, stand by for battle!"

The Hibernator Pokémon landed onto the black ice, slightly cracking the spot of icy battlefield it landed on with its 277 pounds of girth. Ursaring was Paul's biggest offensive weapon in this battle, having no weakness to Ice-type moves while packing super-effective-to-Ice moves like Hammer Arm and Focus Blast. It was still susceptible to being frozen by Ice-type moves, however, as it had been rendered useless this way in two battles before now. Both instances were gym battles, no less. Sneasel still had a massive speed and agility advantage over Ursaring as well; something Paul hoped his first plan would affect to better his chances of overcoming the Sharp Claw Pokémon.

"Ooh, this might be trouble!" Candice hollered with enthusiasm. "Well, it would be if that huge Normal-type could catch us!" She winked at Paul. "Think you can do that?"

The only response Candice got for her taunting was a frown – one that showed the Gym Leader that her opponent was not fooling around here. "Bulk Up, let's go."

Ursaring growled, pumping its paws into fists as a red aura overcame the beast, raising its offense and defense simultaneously. Candice looked intrigued.

"Alright, that's all the leeway you get, Paul," she said. "Because it's time for this kiai battle to finally start! Let's do it, Sneasel!"

Sneasel was pumped up and ready to take off. "Make that meanie pay for messing up our gym's battlefield! Use Metal Claw!"

Paul just smirked at his opponent's remark; Candice remained oblivious to his plans. He imagined he was expected to have Ursaring use a move that would increase its speed based on what the Gym Leader had said earlier. But… in all his years of favoring Pokémon of bulky, tank-like builds above all others, speed was rarely a concern of his; especially in cases like this where such efforts would be futile anyway, given the notoriously speedy opponent that Ursaring could never outpace even at top speed, as well as the terrain that only the opponent could use to aid in its acceleration. Only amateurs would actually attempt to beat Pokémon like Sneasel in terms of speed using large, lumbering Pokémon like Ursaring, who would be unable to maintain good footing on a sheet of solid ice, Paul thought.

Besides, when Candice was more than happy to have Sneasel go on the offense at a close range, the young trainer saw no reason to have his Pokémon move any more than what was absolutely necessary.

Without hesitation, Paul allowed Ursaring to be hit with the attack, though its naturally high defenses coupled with the boost in Bulk Up easily allowed for the Hibernation Pokémon to take Metal Claw with little to no visible indication that the attack even affected it.

"Not dodging, huh?" Candice noted with a grumble, nodding to Sneasel to continue its rapid assault of the same physical attack. "This isn't really the kiai battle I was looking for, Paul. You _are_ planning to fight back, right?"

"Maybe," was Paul's deadpan cryptic answer; truly, he enjoyed being able to rile up any Gym Leader, as it was proof of his ability to outwit them. Candice did make a fool out of him in their last encounter, but Paul was intent proving here and now that only _this_ battle mattered, as this was the only real battle with Candice that would show the full extent of Paul's strength as a Pokémon Trainer. Any Gym Leader worth their salt would agree with him: a Pokémon battle is only as valid as the evidence that both sides gave it their all regardless of the end result or how it all played out. Last time, Paul simply wasn't in the condition to perform to his usual standards. By the end of today, he was going to make sure Candice would forget about his horrendous first impression and only leave with her the proof that he was able to defeat her against the odds… despite both his self-imposed type disadvantage and his own personal disadvantage with which he was forever cursed.

Zoey grimaced at that statement. "_Maybe?_" she echoed, mimicking the smug tone of the trainer who said it first. "Careful, Miss Senior!" she called out to Candice. "He probably wants Sneasel to keep attacking; that'll leave it wide open for a counterattack!"

Paul was comfortable enough with his current situation to actually acknowledge Zoey's comments, looking fully annoyed as he glared straight up at her. "So, Candice. Do real Gym Leaders just let their friends come in and guide them through the entire battle holding their hand?" Zoey glared at the remark, but Paul did not relent. "Well, _do_ they?"

Candice let out an awkward grin, knowing Zoey was just wanting to help her friend (and the Coordinator certainly made it no secret that she disliked Paul enough to go out of her way and delay her own journey just to watch him lose), but also couldn't let Paul's question fall on deaf ears. On her honor as a Gym Leader, though she knew Zoey would likely hold a grudge that would test the boundaries of their longstanding friendship, Candice had to side with her opponent here.

"They don't," she conceded; nodding to Paul before following his gaze towards her best friend. "I'm sorry, Zozo; I know you're really rooting for me and I appreciate that a lot, but in all good conscience I can't accept anything more than your moral support for this battle. You should know my role as a Gym Leader doesn't revolve around me beating every challenger."

Zoey already knew where her mentor was going with this and let out a sigh, turning up her nose as she looked away from the battlefield as she did her best to resist giving Paul a nasty retort. "Right, right. I get it. I'm just insulting you by shouting advice like that. I'm sorry, okay?"

"You can apologize when the battle's done," Paul rudely interjected, though he felt that was justified since Zoey had been nothing but rude to him since she barged in. Not even interested in seeing the flustered Coordinator turn her nose up at him in frustration to hide her shame, Paul settled back down to business.

"Keep going, Sneasel! More Metal Claw!" Candice cheered on, moving past the awkward interruption with ease. The Sharp Claw Pokémon continued its close-range assault on the much larger opponent. Despite Zoey's warning, Candice was not all that concerned with keeping her Pokémon within Ursaring's reach, confident that her Sneasel's speed would allow it to dodge any attack the Hibernator Pokémon could throw in retaliation.

Paul did his best to withhold the devious smirk that slipped through a few times when he last battled Ash; this was the perfect opportunity to land Ursaring's first and probably only needed attack. "Hammer Arm, now!"

Candice gulped when she heard that attack being called. Before she could even tell Sneasel to get out of there, Ursaring's glowing fist of fury landed point-blank over Sneasel's skull. Hammer Arm was a Fighting-type move, of course; a powerful one that honed in on Sneasel's greatest weakness. By keeping movements to a minimum with the added buff of Bulk Up, Paul's Ursaring had the energy to spare to make this blow swift and even more devastating than it usually was – on the flipside, Candice's Sneasel had been expending much of its energy dodging all of Paul's attacks up to this point, as well as relentlessly attacking. Add in Sneasel's naturally weak defenses against most attacks, especially of a type it would be critically weak to regardless of its condition, and that allowed for a perfectly calculated win made in one single attack.

"No way, no _way!_" the Gym Leader wailed as the force of Hammer Arm turned Sneasel into a figurative puddle of mush over a crater made in the blackened ice.

"Sneasel is unable to battle!" Mr. Honcho declared, gesturing to the challenger's side of the field. "So Ursaring is the winner!"

For such a well-planned and methodical victory, Paul finally allowed himself to smirk, already in a better mood seeing how much better this battle with Candice was going opposed to last time's. He patiently waited for Candice to give her encouraging words to Sneasel before recalling it to its Pokéball; something he never really understood the point of doing.

"Guess the joke's on me, huh?" Candice said with a chuckle as she pocketed her Pokéball away and brought out another. "You must've had this planned from the start! And here I thought you were stalling. You sure know how to time your attacks, Paul!"

Zoey's eyes were glued on the battlefield, baffled at how calm and composed Paul was. Granted, he did just get the first win of the battle, but there was definitely a change in him from last time. "Guess he has a reason for the things he does after all," she figured. "I don't know how he can stand just letting his Pokémon take all those hits before doing anything, though…"

Paul did allow himself to smile smugly after receiving the compliment from his opponent. "I'll have Ursaring stick around for now," he said. "If all your Ice-types are as vulnerable as your Sneasel, I won't need to make another exchange for the rest of this battle."

Now it was Candice's turn to smirk. "Well, I wouldn't say all my Ice-types are vulnerable," she calmly replied with a subtle, devious tone. "But that Ursaring will definitely be a problem for most of them. I think it's time to kick this battle up a notch so you can see that you and Ash aren't the only ones who can stray from what's _normally_ expected in a battle against an Ice-type specialist!"

"So she's using _that_ one again," Zoey mused with a chuckle. "That sure knocked Ash for a loop when he battled Miss Senior; it's gonna be even worse for Paul."

"Alright, it's time to bring out the wild card," Candice decided as she took out her next Pokéball and held it closely to herself with both hands, as if she were trying to channel her mind and spirit into it. "A master of the way of kiai battling!" she shouted as threw the Pokéball. "Let's do it, Medicham!"

Paul could not hide the shock on his face when he watched the limber Meditation Pokémon gracefully land on the darkened ice field. "What the…?!"

What a wild card indeed; for all the time Paul and Conway invested into making a solid strategy to combat Candice, the one thing neither of them even once considered was the possibility of the Gym Leader having a Pokémon that was not an Ice-type at all! This was not unheard of, though, as Paul had faced a handful of Gym Leaders across Kanto, Johto, and Hoenn that had at least one Pokémon that was not of their specialty type.

But that was not the case at all in Sinnoh: Roark, Maylene, Crasher Wake, Fantina, Gardenia, and Byron all used Pokémon that were at least partially of their specialized type. After six consecutive Gym Battles like this, Paul had forgotten to take into account the possibility that one of Candice's Pokémon would not even be an Ice-type. But even if he had, Paul likely would have discounted the possibility based on the fact that all of his Sinnoh Gym Battles to this point had no such element to them. Even if Conway were here now, no doubt he would be freaking out because he wouldn't have planned for this; improvisation was not Conway's forte.

Fortunately, Paul was not nearly as helpless as Conway when faced with a challenge that completely went against what he prepared for. However, this was still bad news as Medicham was a Psychic/Fighting-type – the latter type of which would cause problems for Ursaring. Even worse, _none_ of the Hibernation Pokémon's moves would do much damage; Focus Blast, Hammer Arm, and Slash were all resisted by Medicham's dual typing. Paul could have Ursaring relentlessly use Bulk Up so it could withstand the opponent's attacks while chipping away its health with boosted attack power, but that would be a very arduous and lengthy process.

Even that would likely not work out from beginning to end, though, as Paul had a field disadvantage once more. While not as speedy as Sneasel, Medicham could still easily run circles around Ursaring; should Ursaring try to move around too much on the ice, it risked slipping up and becoming completely vulnerable.

"Still gonna stick with Ursaring now?" Candice asked her challenger, being rather coy – but for good reason. She had effectively made Paul eat his words; the Gym Leader could make that assessment based on the fact that Paul let his emotions slip for just a moment after she revealed Medicham. That much told her Paul had no real way to deal with her Pokémon with what he had now. Either he would suck up his pride and make an exchange now to even the odds, or stubbornly take an inevitable loss.

It was a tough choice for Paul to make, but he did not forget his former traveling companion's advice to not be too caught up in his pride and make stupid mistakes. Obviously he wasn't going to keep Ursaring in for much longer, but he thought up at least one useful thing for it to do before the Hibernation Pokémon would be forced to return.

"Use Hammer Arm, on the field this time!" Paul ordered, glad he had stopped a moment to think this through; otherwise Ursaring would have been utterly wasted here. Its powerful glowing fists slammed down hard on the ice terrain. Thanks to Bulk Up's power boost, the attack was more than enough to not only make a steep crater in the area of impact, but also leave a seismic shockwave in its wake. The entire floor, even outside the battlefield of ice experienced minor tremors – tremors even Zoey could slightly feel as she sat and watched on.

"That's intense," Zoey muttered, gritting her teeth as she paid close attention to the details of this battle. "But why would Paul make Ursaring aim the floor and not—" Just then, she became alarmed as the ice beyond Hammer Arm's impact site started to shake and split apart, which quickly created a deep fissure that would eventually bisect the entire field in a vertical line, starting from Paul's position and ending with Candice's.

"—_That's_ why!" the Coordinator realized, quickly to panic. "He really is trying to trash the whole battlefield!" First it was the abuse of Haze to color the ice, then Shadow Ball to create masses of chunky ice debris across the field. Now Hammer Arm had effectively carved the field in half; something Paul was quite satisfied with.

Candice wasn't going to wait around for the impending trench to reach her Pokémon, of course. "Medicham, get out of there! And let's take this fight to Ursaring – now!"

It wasn't hard for Medicham to dodge the fissure and it landed with grace away from the domino effect of Hammer Arm's impact on the ice. Once set on the frozen floor again, Medicham nimbly skated its way towards its much larger opponent. However, the Meditation Pokémon's momentum was inhibited by the large amounts of debris that it had to go out of its way to move over or around. This was exactly what Paul hoped for, as it gave him just enough time to recall his Pokémon before Candice ordered a Fire Punch attack. Ursaring was sent back into its Pokéball mere seconds before Medicham slammed into the spot it previously stood, making a crater of its own as the ice was melted. Steam rose up from all sides of Medicham, who quickly backflipped to land several feet away from its landing spot.

Though the attack missed, Candice was breathing a sigh of relief, knowing it would have been much worse for her if she had called out a certain other attack instead of Fire Punch.

Paul was left conflicted as to how he would truly counter Medicham. This Pokémon put a serious kink in the plans he and Conway made for this battle, forcing Paul to consider which of his chosen four would be best suited to this agile Psychic/Fighting-type. Ursaring was obviously not an option to be used until Medicham could be defeated; Torterra lacked the effective move set to compensate for its inevitable struggle against Medicham's speed and mobility advantage, Gliscor was only a slightly better option since it had X-Scissor to work with (but Paul didn't count on getting this lucky with his recalling time again, and Gliscor would be having the toughest time against of the rest of Candice's Pokémon if the rest truly were Ice-types)… which left his already battle-worn Honchkrow. Its exhaustion aside, Honchkrow was the best defensive counter, and even if it couldn't take Medicham down, Paul knew the Big Boss Pokémon would be able to weaken it considerably. Besides that, it looked as if the battlefield could use another coat or two of Haze. It seemed, realistically, that this was the only viable option for now.

"Now, Honchkrow! Stand by for battle!" Paul sent out his weary bird, though thankfully it had gotten a small amount of rest since it was first recalled. If Honchkrow couldn't be the one to take Medicham out, then Paul really would be facing a big problem, and none of Conway's battle plans were going to be relevant for this opponent. This round would truly test Paul's ability to make the right decisions in battle on his own – without an old friend's reference guide or a personal grudge against the opponent to drive him to do this right.

Candice nodded approvingly at the choice. "Clever pick, Paul. I hope that Honchkrow's able to stay in this long enough to turn the tables like you're hoping! Alright, Medicham, let's try that Fire Punch again!"

"Dodge it and use Haze!" Paul quickly ordered; Haze had a double benefit of giving the ice a fresh coat of black as well as lowering the visibility range in the field, consequently causing Medicham's Fire Punch to miss.

Zoey raised an eyebrow at what she just witnessed. "Using Haze _again?_ Hasn't he messed up the field enough?"

When Medicham carefully landed back on the tattered and tainted field, Candice was shown looking visibly annoyed. "Just what do you have against my gym's battlefield, huh?!"

Paul chose not to answer or explain; he simply smirked as he called for Honchkrow's next move. This time said move was going to prove to be far more useful in combat: "Shadow Ball!"

"Erk!" In all her excitement, Candice had momentarily forgotten Honchkrow had that move, mainly because it was never used offensively against her Sneasel at the time; its sole purpose was to litter the battlefield with icy chunks of debris. Now Paul had an unexpected use for it, since Ghost-type moves were one of Medicham's two weaknesses. "Dodge, Medicham, dodge!"

Although graceful, Medicham had to take extra precious moments to make sure it could make a clean landing; the icy debris, the blackened color of the ice making it harder to find a clear landing spot, and the notable crevice that carved the field in half all posed a threat to maintaining balance. If Medicham were to slip over the frozen chunks or fall into the crevice, that would give Paul quite an opening to attack it while it was rendered defenseless.

Those moments would prove being costly to Medicham, as Shadow Ball slammed into the Meditation Pokémon just as it started to jump to a safe location. The field of the gym had gone through so much direct punishment by this point; being coated in a dark color, chunks of debris varying in size littering the entire area, several impact craters… and of course, the makeshift trench splitting the frozen floor right down the middle. Something else came as a consequence of that, made obvious to both trainers when Medicham skid across the floor: many areas had begun to melt, leaving shallow pools of black water. This was owed both to the heat from the impact of the attacks that hit the field rather than a Pokémon _and_ a particular element of science coming into play.

Medicham ended up in one of these black puddles, staining itself in the process. While Paul took a moment to look up at the strong lights that hung above the stadium, Candice formulated a little plan to make the entirety of Paul's efforts backfire. It was no secret to her that Paul was focusing on trashing her gym's arena for a reason – his mention of black ice made her realize the challenger's goal here. By coating everything black and preventing the ice from refracting light, Paul was eliminating Candice's field advantage (as naturally most her Pokémon were trained specifically to master the art of sliding and skating the ice with precision to befuddle her opponents). Evidenced by Medicham's hesitation to dodge immediately from the last attack, the black color made many of the obstacles on the field made earlier much harder to see. If Candice didn't want Medicham to be prone to getting constantly hit by Honchkrow's attacks, she would have to risk getting Medicham into a jam via an obstacle she could no longer see, which would make the Meditation Pokémon wide open for another attack right away. And this was a complete non-issue for Paul's Flying-type that would spend very little time on the field's surface.

"I can play dirty too, ya know!" Candice suddenly proclaimed, snapping Paul out of his own thoughts as he redirected his attentions to the Gym Leader. She wondered for a moment why Paul was looking up for so long, but brushed it off in favor of shaking him up with her brilliant counter to his strategy. "Yeah, eyes over here, Paul! If you wanna mess up the floor of my gym so badly, you're gonna have to face the consequences!"

"Oh yeah?" Paul said as he crossed his arms. He looked intrigued about what counter Candice had to his plans.

"You bet," Candice assured with a wink. "Medicham, give yourself a nice little bath in that nasty puddle you slid into. Then, I want you to use Power Trick!"

Paul grimaced a bit when he heard the name of that move, for he was no stranger to it. The bright colors of Medicham were dulled significantly with the dark, dirty water coating it. What contrasted that was a coat of sparkling light in several different colors which covered Medicham for a moment while its attack and defensive powers were swapped. For certain Pokémon that had superb stats in one area while severely lacking in another, a move like this could change the whole game if an opponent was not prepared to deal with the consequences of said change… and of course, assuming the trainer ordering the move knew how to best make use of it. Medicham, however, didn't have much in the way of lopsided statistics, and Paul hadn't studied the species enough to know right away which boost the Meditation Pokémon was getting here.

But then he quickly remembered Candice's order before using Power Trick: to coat her Pokémon in the black liquid puddle. There was only one good reason for the Gym Leader to opt for this, and Paul was quick to catch on: Medicham's bright colors were dulled significantly after being doused in the black pool. It no longer stuck out like a sore thumb in a blackened battlefield, impeding both the trainer and Pokémon's ability to keep an eye on it. Thankfully there wasn't much in the way of anything for Medicham to hide behind since Paul's Pokémon had obliterated those obstacles to pieces, but this camouflage would still hamper the accuracy of Honchkrow's attacks.

Candice smiled sweetly upon seeing Paul's uncertainty. "I guess you already know my Medicham's attack and defense power got switched with that move," she correctly assumed. "But… then you're not sure what angle I'm getting at with this, are you?"

Zoey nodded as she mumbled to herself in reflection of these past few turns. "Medicham's a pretty balanced Pokémon, so it's not obvious right away if its attack power was boosted or its defense. But Miss Senior's clearly going for a camouflage route to keep Honchkrow from landing any more hits on Medicham… it could go either way." She looked to Paul's Honchkrow. "Paul's got a big type advantage right now, but Miss Senior still has plenty of ways to take his Honchkrow out. It comes down to what Miss Senior thinks is the best way to handle it – enhanced power while using the camouflage to make up for its downgraded defenses – or using camouflage and a stronger defense together to wear Honchkrow down so it can strike back at just the right moment. Honchkrow's taken a lot of damage already from Sneasel; even with a decrease in attack power, it wouldn't take Medicham long to take it down. It's a tough call to make."

"It doesn't really matter," Paul finally answered. "Whichever way you've settled on your strategy, that Medicham is history." He looked to his Pokémon, ready to issue a command. "Now, Honchkrow! Use Sky Attack!"

Sky Attack posed a real threat to Medicham, but Candice wasn't the least bit concerned. An attack that powerful required a charge time – something her Medicham could easily intercept. "Let's do it, Medicham! Hi Jump Kick!"

Tricky as it was to spot a blackened Medicham in a black battlefield, it was made doubly difficult for one such as Honchkrow who had the aerial view of the arena; an angle in which there was no way to discern topography, meaning everything looked flat and blended in even more so.

Medicham leaped into the air, landing a harsh, critical hit on Honchkrow. This was a great inconvenience for Paul, as the attack not only did a good chunk of damage, but it was powerful enough to knock the Big Boss Pokémon out of the air and onto the ice, effectively canceling the Sky Attack.

"Alright!" Candice cheered in triumph, pumping her fist into the air. "Let's keep our kiai mojo going, Medicham! Fire Punch!"

"Honchkrow, _move!_" Paul shouted, not wanting to risk Honchkrow taking much more damage. If he couldn't defeat Candice's Medicham with Honchkrow here, then there would be major problems for the rest of the Pokémon he had left to use. He was visibly relieved when Honchkrow managed to back away in time before Medicham landed its blazing fist on its intended target, once more making a steaming black puddle of water where Honchkrow used to be.

"I gotta hand it to Miss Senior; she's definitely making the best of her disadvantage this round," Zoey noted. "She's got Paul on the ropes, all while only having two moves to use against Honchkrow for the whole battle." This much was true – with Power Trick not being an offensive move and Honchkrow's typing making it immune to Confusion, her options were limited to Hi Jump Kick and Fire Punch. "As long as she chooses just the right moment to use Hi Jump Kick, Miss Senior's got this in the bag."

That was why Candice was so relieved when her Medicham's Fire Punch missed back when Paul recalled Ursaring: Hi Jump Kick's incredible power came at the trade-off of damaging the user of the move if it should miss the target. It wasn't a matter of small recoil damage either (such as Ash's Pikachu's Volt Tackle, or his Staraptor's Brave Bird); it only took a couple of missed Hi Jump Kicks to render the user unable to battle. Had Candice chosen that move back then, odds are her Medicham would have already been incapacitated from the damage Honchkrow dealt by this point.

Paul was fully aware of how risky Hi Jump Kick was and noticed Candice was only using it when she knew odds were very low for it to miss, such as when Honchkrow was charging for Sky Attack. That explained why the Gym Leader didn't opt to swiftly take out Ursaring with that move – with the overwhelming disadvantage, she knew Ursaring wouldn't be staying on the field for very long. Paul was forced to accept he would have to cut down on close-ranged attacks if he wished for Honchkrow to stay in this long enough to finish the job. He couldn't simply keep Honchkrow up in the air lobbing endless Shadow Ball attacks either; he learned from his battle with Ash that getting too comfortable mentally with a battle's progress would leave himself open to the determined Candice who would be waiting for Paul to get lazy with his strategy.

At the very least, it was advantageous to his master plan for Medicham to keep using Fire Punch. He could tell Honchkrow was close to reaching its limit – his Flying-type was getting visibly tired just staying airborne. Dodging would be harder and harder to pull off… but there was still one more move Honchkrow had that Paul hadn't utilized yet. It was a very handy move for the current situation, but Honchkrow was so damaged that he could only risk using it once he was sure it would defeat the Meditation Pokémon.

Then it hit Paul: the perfect way to defeat Medicham. Though a risky plan in of itself, Paul knew there was no better or more fitting way of achieving victory. He couldn't help smiling; something that perplexed Candice.

"You're still up to something," she noted. "That's good; it means you're still gonna make this interesting."

"If you really knew what I was up to, you would've won by now," Paul challenged, opting to mess with Candice's head similar to how he did after their first battle. "But go on, keep attacking. Honchkrow can outpace Medicham at every turn – so be careful about which move you tell Medicham to use."

"He's nuts if he thinks Honchkrow's got the energy to dodge all of Medicham's attacks," Zoey remarked, bewildered by Paul's statement. "Even I can tell that poor Pokémon's about to keel over… but what else could I expect from a guy like Paul? Of course he's gonna run his Pokémon to the ground."

It pleased Paul that even Zoey was falling for his act. A trainer's way with words could prove to be crucial to how a battle turned out, and Paul already knew from one certain past experience that, while sharp-minded, Candice had difficulty with bluffs and fake-outs. He never would have known to do this if he hadn't gotten sick – how bizarre it was that Paul would credit his crippling disease to his victory in this battle!

"I'll be careful," Candice assured. "But don't expect this to play out the way you want it to." She looked to her Pokémon. "Let's go, Medicham! Maximum kiai power! See how Honchkrow likes a row of Fire Punches!"

"Keep dodging!" Paul instructed, though he knew it was unlikely that the Big Boss Pokémon would be able to dodge them all. He turned out to be correct; Honchkrow outmaneuvered its opponent for the first few strikes, but its waning stamina eventually allowed Medicham to land in a strike, sending Honchkrow back into the ice. The impact of landing was rough, as evidenced by Honchkrow twitching as it tried in vain to stretch out its wings to fly. It was getting close to time to seal the deal with a final Hi Jump Kick – but Candice held back. Even with Medicham's camouflage and better condition, the Gym Leader had a feeling there was a reason why Paul opted to have his Pokémon dodge instead of counterattack.

Only Candice truly knew what exactly Power Trick did for the Meditation Pokémon – its offensive power was raised a notch in exchange for becoming a bit more vulnerable. Though the power boost was not particularly drastic by any means, it was obviously enough to make Medicham's attacks knock Honchkrow clear out of the sky, which was a notable improvement from what the attacks were doing before Power Trick was used. However, one or two more direct hits from Honchkrow would be enough to put Medicham out of commission now, and thanks to that partial Dark-typing, Medicham had only two close-ranged moves to work with. Honchkrow _looked_ to be wide open for a follow-up attack, but Candice had a feeling this was a trap.

That was exactly what Paul wanted Candice to think. "Well, obviously there's not much left that you can do, Honchkrow," he said to his Pokémon. "Looks like you've failed me again."

Though Paul's tone sounded harsh and demoralizing as it normally did, the Big Boss Pokémon took note of the particular intense look in its trainer's eyes; normally when Paul gave up on one of his Pokémon, he would refuse to look them in the eye. That was not the case at all here.

"What a jerk," Zoey grumbled, glaring down at the challenger. "He's got no problem letting his Pokémon get creamed at all! And how can he think it's okay to just _tell_ Honchkrow it's useless after all the hard work it's done? Man, just when I thought he couldn't be more opposite of Ash…"

"Is that a forfeit?" Candice asked Paul, finding it peculiar that he might do such a thing when last time he clung to the bitter end no matter how hopeless it got for him.

"No, it's not," Paul replied, still stern as ever. "I'm just making sure Honchkrow recognizes how much it failed to take out a Pokémon it should have defeated easily. But I'm not one to give up until the end… so do what you have to do."

Honchkrow was still unable to move from its position; no longer capable of flying. It didn't appear Paul had any tricks left up his sleeve, but Candice wondered if that's what Paul intended. Medicham would have to rush right towards it to deliver a final blow regardless, but just because Honchkrow was rendered earthbound from this point on didn't mean it couldn't attack. A point-blank ranged Shadow Ball would be more than enough to defeat Medicham, so Candice had to be absolutely sure Honchkrow would be unable to defend or counter in order to land the coup de grace on her opponent.

"That's the kiai spirit," Candice commended. "Never going down without a fight! Alright, Medicham, let's see if we can clinch this win with Fire Punch!"

The way the Gym Leader worded this commend told Paul that this was not truly a final attack; she was anticipating him to counter, so that she would know to get Medicham to evade the attack and squander the last of Honchkrow's energy before landing the _real_ final blow of the match: Hi Jump Kick.

Paul decided to play along with this. He briefly looked to Honchkrow and shook his head; a gesture his Pokémon seemed to understand, before being issued a command: "Use Shadow Ball, with whatever strength you've got left!"

The attack certainly didn't look like Honchkrow was putting its all into it; this particular Shadow Ball was much smaller and flickering.

"Hah, that's all you've got?" Candice laughed out. "Medicham, forget the attack and dodge it!" She really didn't want to have Medicham use Fire Punch if it didn't have to, knowing it was contributing to the mess of her battlefield. The pitiful little Shadow Ball was much more slowly executed, and thus easily dodged.

Paul tightened his fists and grimaced; his reaction to the missed attack and the weak execution of the attack in general told Candice that was his last chance to win the match. If that was the best Honchkrow could muster, then it had nothing left, offensively or defensively.

"Awesome!" Zoey cheered. "Paul took a huge gamble and missed out big time! Bet he feels foolish for thinking he could beat Medicham just through a type advantage, hah!"

In truth, just like his last battle with Ash, Paul was not thinking just about type advantages. Some things went his way in this battle, while others backfired terribly. Regardless of this back-and-forth, Paul knew the battle here would be decided the next time Candice called a move.

Candice was unable to stop smirking; Honchkrow had to have been entirely spent after that last attack. It lacked the energy to fly, and by now, was completely stationary in its position. She knew there wouldn't be a better opportunity to use her trump card, so she went for it.

"Medicham, let's close the book on this match," she enthusiastically told her Pokémon. Though it had taken its fair share of damage as well, the Meditation Pokémon retained its spunk and gave Candice a thumbs-up in agreement. "There's no escape now! Hi Jump Kick, let's go!"

Paul watched the opponent Pokémon jump high into the air, obviously intent on making the final blow a devastating and decisive one. Honchkrow wearily looked up before glancing back to its trainer. When Medicham made its descent with one leg charged with much of its energy, that was Paul's cue to take a _real_ gamble.

"Honchkrow, Sucker Punch!"

"Huh?!"

Candice could only gawk as she watched quite a scene unfold. Just as her Medicham was about to land a direct, critical hit with Hi Jump Kick, one of Honchkrow's wings glowed with a dismal black and purple energy. Only needing to raise this single wing to get the job done, Honchkrow effortlessly smacked Medicham away.

Candice could only look on in horror as her Medicham was flung back to her side of the field. It crashed into the tainted ice; a plume of smoke rose up from the harsh impact. Both the Gym Leader and her best friend fixed their gaze on the impact site, waiting for the smoke to clear…

Moments later, when the smoke dissipated, the reactions between the two girls differed: Zoey was perplexed, as from her position in the stadium she had trouble seeing where Medicham was. She squinted in hopes of seeing the details, but all she really needed to see was Candice's face to know what the end result of this clash was.

The Meditation Pokémon lied in the center of a deep crater made in the floor of ice; Medicham was at least a few feet deep. It was also quite thoroughly knocked out, made evident with the swirls in its eyes.

"Medicham…!" Candice rushed over to pull her Pokémon out of the crevice. Now everyone could see what happened, meaning it was Mr. Honcho's cue.

"Medicham is unable to battle; the winner is Honchkrow!"

"H-how…?" Zoey gasped. "I thought Honchkrow had no energy left to fight or defend… how could that one attack cause _this?_"

Paul smirked as he recalled Honchkrow to its Pokéball, knowing it could use a good rest after that slugfest. "Sounds like you don't know much about Sucker Punch," he said, finally addressing Zoey.

"I know it's a Dark-type move!" Zoey grumbled, easy to take offense to Paul's words. "But that shouldn't have been enough to knock Medicham out!"

"Maybe your friend can explain it to you in words even you can understand," Paul mused, allowing himself to be smug with his tone. After all, he not only pulled off quite a comeback stunt, but there was a special meaning behind it as well.

Candice still had her Medicham cradled in her arms while she carefully pulled out its Pokéball. "You were nothing short of excellent, Medicham," she assured her fallen friend. "Even with that huge disadvantage, you held your own out there. Get some rest; you deserve it." With that, Medicham was returned to its Pokéball. She had heard Zoey and Paul's exchange in the meantime, and looked to them both after she had her Pokémon taken care of.

"What's the deal, Miss Senior?" Zoey asked, sounding confused rather than angry. "There's no way Medicham could've lost to just one move like that; not when Honchkrow was so weak!"

Candice bowed her head, smiling humbly and chuckling to herself; both from amusement of Zoey's obvious disdain for Paul and the fact that he won the match and acknowledging that Paul had defeated her not just in the Pokémon battle, but also in a battle of wits.

"Well, Zozo, there was a lot more than just Sucker Punch that caused my defeat," she said. "You see, Sucker Punch is a move that automatically intercepts all attacks, meaning it will always hit first regardless of how fast the opponent is. And judging how far that move knocked Medicham back, I think a certain ability kicked in to boost its power."

"Super Luck," Paul affirmed with a nod.

Zoey remained skeptical. "And that alone was strong enough to send Medicham crashing through the ice? That hole looked pretty deep if you had to reach down as far as you did to get Medicham out…"

"Nope, there's even more to it than that," Candice replied, in an oddly cheerful tone despite her defeat. "Medicham's own power backfired against it; you know why Hi Jump Kick is such a risky move, right?"

"Yeah, if Hi Jump Kick misses the target, the power charged up for the move seriously damages the Pokémon using it," Zoey recalled, before double-taking as she realized she inadvertently answered her own question. "—Oh! Because Hi Jump Kick didn't hit Honchkrow, then…"

"That's right," Candice said, glancing down at the deep hole her Medicham made on the battlefield. "Medicham lost that gamble and paid the price for it. It was the critical hit from Sucker Punch _and_ the damage caused by a failed Hi Jump Kick that cost me this match." The Gym Leader looked to Paul, beaming at her opponent as she addressed him. "None of this would've been possible if I saw through Paul's bluffing, though. He knew I wouldn't risk Medicham using Hi Jump Kick unless I was sure Honchkrow couldn't dodge it! Isn't that right, Paul?"

Really, she wanted to commend Paul for showing his true colors as a battler today, opposed to how he battled her over a week ago. Candice knew this was the true Paul she was battling, and she felt it was worth the wait to finally have the opportunity to experience his true skill. With Zoey in attendance, however, Candice refused to break the confidentiality agreement she swore to Paul. Being one of the few individuals to know Paul's deepest, darkest secret, it warmed Candice's heart to see the young man standing strong in the face of his many adversities.

"There's more to a battle than just how the Pokémon fight," Paul affirmed, managing to stay calm all the while during this battle. "The ability to communicate with your Pokémon without words and confuse your opponent is an invaluable skill to have."

This was where his ten-day training routine with Reggie truly paid off: once Paul came to terms with his weak connection with his Pokémon on the first day, that became the ultimate hurdle the young trainer strived to overcome. He refused to be overt and sappy like Ash, his friends, or his brother. Still, Paul knew he would be stuck in a rut unless he could learn to truly bond with his Pokémon. Shaking his head while addressing Honchkrow directly towards the end of the battle was in fact a signal for Honchkrow to intentionally make its Shadow Ball attack as weak as possible – not only to give off the illusion that Honchkrow had no energy left to attack or defend, but to preserve what power it did have left in order to make Sucker Punch strong enough to end the battle.

"And that is why I'm honored to have you as an opponent!" Candice commended as she brought out another Pokéball. "So, Paul, you ready to keep this party going?"

Paul nodded as he withdrew his next Pokéball. Though Candice was down two Pokémon while Paul hadn't lost any yet, he was definitely bound to suffer some losses for the next round. Honchkrow had taken a severe amount of damage from Sneasel and Medicham, while Ursaring withstood a notable amount of damage from Sneasel as well. His only remaining fresh Pokémon were the two that suffered a devastating weakness to Ice-type moves; while Medicham was the obvious wildcard of her roster, it was safe for Paul to assume he would be dealing with Ice-type Pokémon for the rest of this challenge. Abomasnow was a given; very likely to be Candice's final choice, which left one unknown opponent that would be coming up next.

Before he threw the Pokéball, however, Paul looked back behind him to where he left his backpack sitting. The climax of the last battle was owed to Sucker Punch, a move Paul's Honchkrow learned in a pinch during his last battle with former companion Conway. Though it ultimately wasn't enough to give Paul the win, it proved to be a useful move that Paul associated with Conway ever since. Since the two parted ways, Paul forbade his Pokémon from ever using the move again, purely out of spite. Now that Paul had accepted that what he did was wrong, he had a change of heart about the move. It was Paul's intention all along to make use of Sucker Punch for his rematch against Candice, in addition to applying the strategies and techniques Conway came up with just for his friend's benefit. Now, Paul felt a calm glow of warmth throughout his body… because he felt his homage to Conway was perfectly executed. Sucker Punch was not used frivolously, but rather became the deciding factor of a win Paul otherwise would not have achieved.

He really, truly wished Conway was here right now to see it.

Upon hearing the Gym Leader call out his name out of concern (to Candice and Zoey, it looked as if Paul had zoned out), Paul eventually turned around to face his opponent… but just before that, he faintly whispered something to himself; something no one else inside the Snowpoint Gym could hear. But it even if they did hear it, they wouldn't have understood what Paul was saying. Paul was now completely calm and serene; he knew even if his words weren't heard by the right person that the last shreds of his spiteful sentiments against his friend dissipated with three simple, yet liberating words:

"Thank you, Conway."

* * *

Meanwhile, much further south in the Sinnoh region, an important battle was already underway in Eterna City's gym. While Zoey was little more than an unwarranted annoyance to Paul for his battle, it truly was a blessing compared to the "support" poor Conway had as he struggled against Grass-type specialist Gardenia.

"Oh, _come on!_ What kind of move was that, huh? You'd never see _me_ making dumb mistakes like that in a battle, no sir! What's your excuse, Mister Secret Agent?!"

Conway had the patience of a saint to withstand Barry's so-called "tough love" approach of coaching – not that Conway felt he really needed coaching, let alone coaching from a simpleton. Gardenia surprisingly proved to be quite a challenge for Conway, who had very few Pokémon that could counter Grass-types well. He did at least acquire a Shuckle – a Bug/Rock-type – between his trek from Hearthome City to Eterna City. However, Conway had little time to train this obscure Pokémon, and for this battle Conway really wanted Smoochum to shine after her not-so stellar performance against Barry's Staraptor. Smoochum was also an Ice-type – Conway hoped her Powder Snow move could make up for her lacking experience and extremely weak defenses, but Gardenia's Pokémon were surprisingly sturdy.

This was the final match of the battle: Smoochum versus Cacnea. Heracross was Conway's best hope for this battle, but it ran into some bad luck when Gardenia's Roserade managed to poison Heracross very early on. Heracross was strong enough to eventually take out Roserade, but succumbed to the ongoing poison before Gardenia's next Pokémon, Turtwig, could make its first move. Turtwig versus Shuckle ended up dragging out for a while due to Shuckle's nigh-incomparable defenses (needless to say this was the point that Barry flew into a rage and resorted to backseat battling that persisted to this very moment). However, once Turtwig used Leech Seed, it was inevitable that Shuckle would lose out in a battle of endurance, especially since Turtwig was bombarding it almost constantly with Leaf Storm thanks to its unnaturally high speed. However, Shuckle did manage to do some significant damage to Turtwig before it was no longer able to battle; by buying time in having Shuckle use Withdraw to enhance its defense, Conway took advantage of the sheer gap between Shuckle and Turtwig's speed by having Shuckle use Gyro Ball multiple times to wear Turtwig down. This allowed Smoochum to finish what Shuckle started after it was knocked out, and now it all came down to this single match-up.

"Aw, ease up on the poor guy," Gardenia addressed the peanut gallery, though as usual she was consistently lighthearted and upbeat even with her chiding. "We all make mistakes eventually," she said with a smirk as she eyed the blonde boy in the stands. "Isn't that right, Barry?" Her own teasing statement was punctuated with a wink towards an abruptly defensive trainer.

"H-hey! I still won, didn't I?!" Barry squawked at the Gym Leader, knowing she was referencing the critical point of their own battle where Cacnea surprisingly gave Barry's Empoleon a hard time with its Drain Punch attack. Barry made mistake after mistake throughout his Gym Battle; Gardenia found it quite miraculous that her challenger managed to pull through in the end despite the comedy of errors. "And since I won, I think that gives me the right to point out when the know-it-all nerd makes a stupid mistake!"

"If you want to harp on my errors that badly, Barry, I request that you hold off on your criticisms until the battle is over," Conway suggested – and though he sounded relatively calm given his stressful circumstances at the moment, truthfully the young man who tried to walk the path of nonviolence as best he could held back a very strong desire to leap into the stands and beat his traveling companion senseless. "I will need to be able to concentrate in order to prevent future missteps, and I find it quite impossible accomplish that when all I can hear is your _complaining._"

But it was too much to ask for Barry to actually let that simple message get through to him; not when he thought his so-called "helpful advice" was being snubbed. "Why I oughta–!" he growled, standing up and stepping over the stands while rolling up his sleeves as if he really intended to march right down to the battlefield and give Conway a piece of his mind.

"Alright, alright, that's enough, now!" Gardenia called out, somehow authoritative yet lighthearted in her tone. "You're getting pretty riled up there, Barry! Just settle down or I'll have to see to it that you get some much-needed acupuncture therapy with Cacnea here!" The Gym Leader winked as she said this; while seemingly a threat, Gardenia thought this sort of thing was genuinely divine and relaxing – something she felt the high-strung Barry desperately needed right now.

That was all she really needed to say to get Barry to shut up and sit back down, which brought out quite a smug smile in Conway that thankfully Barry couldn't see. Conway made a mental note to himself to take a page out of Gardenia's book the next time he wanted Barry to hush up and simmer down.

With that taken care of, it was back to the battle. While Smoochum was able to take out Turtwig without too much trouble thanks to Shuckle wearing it down beforehand, she still sustained some damage before rendering the Tiny Leaf Pokémon unable to battle. This made for an extremely tense final confrontation; by now Conway could tell battling was not really where Smoochum's true strength lied. Her nature and execution of her moves made it obvious that Smoochum was definitely more of a Coordinator's Pokémon – something Conway would have loved to give her, but simply couldn't right now with circumstances as they were now.

"We're ready to continue?" Conway asked, masking his concern with a casual tone. He really wished if Barry insisted on breaking the flow of the battle with his many complaints and protests that he could somehow do so in a way that would enable Conway to make use of that time to rethink his strategy. Smoochum's set of moves were sadly limited and rather gimmicky. Powder Snow was the only consistently useful move, which Gardenia was getting better and better at predicting when it was coming so that the move would miss. It didn't help that Powder Snow itself was relatively weak for an Ice-type move, either; Ice Beam or Blizzard would have been much more effective. The Gym Leader was much better than Barry at handling Confusion as well; Conway would have much preferred the much stronger upgrade, Psychic, by now, but Smoochum was not yet ready to learn moves that powerful. This was the same reason Smoochum didn't have a stronger Ice-type move. That left two non-damaging status moves: Sweet Kiss for confusing, and Sing for putting to sleep. Conway had tried both moves at least once on Turtwig and Shuckle, resulting either in total failure (Sing) or not lasting long enough to make a difference (Sweet Kiss).

"You bet!" Gardenia affirmed; her smirk indicative that she knew exactly what to expect out of her opponent at this stage of the battle. "Alright Cacnea, Needle Arm!"

"Dodge that!" Conway's order came just in time, allowing the Kiss Pokémon to evade Cacnea's glowing arm, which slammed into the ground where she once was. Luckily for Conway, his talent of observation and paying attention (a skill that he still chided Barry for lacking) allowed him to get a feel for the pattern Gardenia was settling into. In particular, Gardenia easily could have chosen a better move to use; Faint Attack and Pin Missile were both super-effective and Drain Punch – which Smoochum could not resist thanks to her partial Ice-typing – was Cacnea's ace in the hole. So long as Cacnea could land that move successfully, it would be impossible to defeat. The nature of Drain Punch was to damage the opponent, then turn that damage into replenishing health for the user.

It was quite disheartening for Smoochum to have such limited offensive options while Cacnea had many, especially since Smoochum's defenses were still quite terrible. But Conway knew that couldn't really be helped; similar to Paul's Weavile's issues in the same area, this was just how the species was built. Powder Snow was still effective against Cacnea, but Conway knew it was only safe to go on the offensive if it was unlikely for Cacnea to land a successful counterattack right afterwards; he really wasn't sure just how much more damage Smoochum could take. At this moment, however, Conway took notice that Cacnea was struggling with something. Without putting much thought into why, he took that opportunity to strike.

"Make some distance, Smoochum, then use Powder Snow!" he commanded, not wanting to take any risks. Smoochum blew the chilly attack at her opponent; while it was successful in hitting Cacnea, Conway was more interested in what happened moments before Powder Snow connected: Cacnea triumphantly pulling its arm up with chunks of earth popping out, which quickly brought Conway to one conclusion: the Needle Arm attack was executed a bit too harshly, which led to its prickly arm getting caught in the ground it struck, hence the cause for the Cactus Pokémon's struggle.

Now that it was freed and still standing after taking a hit, Conway issued a strategic retreat. "Run for it, Smoochum! Into the trees!" It clicked almost instantly within the intellectual trainer's mind to take advantage of the terrain the battle took place on; the Eterna Gym was fairly unique in that its battlefield was not in a more traditional format that most gyms of the world, but instead suited a Grass-type specialist's true domain and took the form of an actual clearing in a natural forest, despite the entire area still being within an indoor gym. Normally this terrain would mainly serve better for Gardenia's Pokémon, but having just witnessed Cacnea's proneness to stick to something provided it hits hard enough, Conway pinpointed a weakness that he could actually exploit. After all, it was either this or a futile game of chance in dodging every attack from now on, which was bound to wear Smoochum out and consequently lose her trainer this challenge.

Conway figured if Cacnea was using this much power in its attacks that both it and its trainer were ready to end this battle. This meant it was likely Cacnea would be putting more and more of its power into its attacks, thus expending its own energy. It also meant a greater chance of Cacnea getting itself stuck again, which Conway was counting on.

"Let's go after it!" Gardenia shouted, keeping a sharp eye on Smoochum's movements. "And use Pin Missile!"

Cacnea threw forth both arms after jumping onto the tree's lowest hanging branch with the spikes all over its body glowing with energy. Once the Cactus Pokémon felt it had a good shot at its opponent, it fired a barrage of spikes towards the fleeing Smoochum, who just barely evaded the attack. This left a series of large spikes sticking into the tree trunk; without needing this pointed out to by its trainer, Cacnea quickly knew to make use of the remnants of its missed attack as makeshift footholds. Consequently, it was gaining on Smoochum's trail. Conway too noticed this as the gap between the Pokémon narrowed quite suddenly.

He knew he couldn't keep Smoochum running away forever… it was time to fight back. "Smoochum, try and hold it back! Use Confusion!"

Similar to how Barry's Staraptor was manipulated in the battle that occurred shortly after the two trainers met, Smoochum was able to halt Cacnea's movements completely with her psychic energy. Unlike Slowking, however, Smoochum was too inexperienced to utilize a more powerful move like Psychic to control an opponent, much less juggle two attacks at once as Conway's first Pokémon could do with relative ease. Cacnea was kept at bay, but it was inevitable that Smoochum would wear out. Conway's mind rushed to think of how to make good use of this situation within Smoochum's limited range of ability.

"Come on, Cacnea! You gotta break out!" Gardenia called out, knowing Cacnea was helpless as long as it was contained within Confusion's power. However, she didn't seem too concerned; mainly because she had noticed that while Cacnea was rendered immobile, Smoochum also had to remain stationary in order to focus her power. She had a feeling once Cacnea could break out of Confusion that Smoochum would be exhausted and left wide open for an attack.

"Do something, already!" Barry barked out, ready to interrupt again despite having not forgotten Gardenia's words from before. "Toss it, throw it, whatever! You love displaying your stupid gravity rules, don't you?!"

"Hm… that's right," Conway realized, smiling at the revelation and the fact that Barry had for once provided some useful commentary. "Smoochum, it's time to throw down! –And I do mean that literally!"

The Kiss Pokémon knew what to do from there. She raised her arms, straining to keep Confusion's power running, but ultimately managed to manipulate the psychic energy to toss her opponent off the tree entirely. Everything looked well and fine… until Confusion wore off in mid-fall.

Gardenia was quick to take action the very moment that happened. "Hang on, Cacnea! No one sticks to things as well as you!"

That prompted a gulp from Conway as he witnessed the Cactus Pokémon using its prickly arms to hug the trunk of the tree to prevent its fall to the ground far below.

"Man," Barry grumbled at the sight. "Why did he bother choosing Smoochum for this, anyway? Even with a type advantage it couldn't beat my Staraptor, so how could it do any better against a Gym Leader? Slowking would've been a much better choice; it's actually _useful._" Both Conway and Smoochum heard this demoralizing banter, though for once Barry was simply musing to himself out loud rather than actively harassing his friend. "What'd be _really_ rich is if Paul was here to see this! He'd _totally_ think this is a majorly pathetic display of battling, and he'd be right on the money there!"

Hearing Paul's name made Conway freeze up; his expression darkened upon acknowledging that despite Barry never having met Paul, his prediction for what Paul would have to say for this battle was exactly how Conway would have imagined it. Despite the length time that had passed since Paul and Conway last saw each other, Conway could effortlessly visualize Paul in the stands right where Barry sat, watching the battle with a most disapproving, indignant look on his face.

He could hear the words in Paul's own voice; what Conway _knew_ his former traveling companion would be saying to him right now…

"_Pathetic. Just pathetic. I'll never understand how someone like you, who loves to learn about everything, can still end up like this where you clearly learned nothing at all since we started traveling together. I told you getting that pathetic Pokémon was nothing but a waste of time. Can you tell me with a straight face that I was wrong, Conway?"_

"I… I…" Conway was frozen in his own imagination, unable to think of how he would answer his own interpretation of Paul. As Gardenia cheered for Cacnea, who was slowly making its way up the tree towards the weary Smoochum, more negative reinforcement flooded through Conway's mind with the unmistakable voice of his former friend.

"_You're such a flake, it sickens me! But what else could I expect from someone like you? Someone who's so quick to break his promises in favor of that cousin you worshipped as a hero, even though he turned out to be nothing more than total scum…"_

The matter of cousin Sloan would always be a sensitive one, no matter how dedicated Conway was to bring him down now. He bowed his head and stared at the vibrant grass, still trapped within his own psyche. "No…"

Barry had no idea what was going on, and Gardenia wasn't paying attention (still focused on making sure Cacnea had the strength to make the full climb back up the tree). "Oh geez," Barry moaned. "Don't tell me you're gonna surrender…!"

"_Even if I didn't ditch you like the trash that you are, you wouldn't have honored your promise to Reggie if we ran into that girl you liked, would you? Don't you dare act like you were doing anything but using me to further your own purposes! Remember how quick you were to forget about the agreement we made just because that redheaded woman was flirting with you? Let alone what you let her do to you… Not once did you ever take me seriously. You're just like Ash and everyone else! You never listened to me before and you're not listening now!"_

"That's not true—!" Conway wailed out, wincing and shaking his head over and over. "It's not, it's not!"

"_You think I lied to you when I told you that Smoochum was nothing but a waste of time? It must be easy to have me as a scapegoat for everything that goes wrong with your life now. Tell me, then! Tell me ONE thing that pathetic little Pokémon's done for you! Out with it, Conway!"_

Just like that, it all became clear. Conway remembered exactly why he held this Smoochum so dear.

"That Smoochum saved my life!" Conway proclaimed, eliciting shock and confusion from both Barry and Gardenia. But all this time, well before Conway called her out by name, Smoochum had been listening intently to her trainer, reading his feelings and sympathizing with him. "Just like I saved your life… and just like your own Pokémon saved your life when you wouldn't take _me_ seriously! It doesn't matter whether or not a Pokémon's naturally gifted; how can any Pokémon that goes out of their way to save your life be anything less than special? This little Smoochum possesses bravery that your own father would be jealous of, and that has to be worth something! I'll prove it to you, here and now, just how much you underestimate this Pokémon you think is _pathetic!_"

This internal battle was about to end on a reassuring note, but it all abruptly dissipated when Gardenia's voice broke through. "… Who are you _talking_ to?"

Just like that, the image of Paul and the sound of his voice vanished as Conway snapped out of his trance, as he looked up and immediately became embarrassed to see Gardenia staring at him as if he had gone crazy. A moment's glance upwards at the stands showed Barry looking equally bewildered.

Conway was about to stutter out some awkward excuse, but as he turned his gaze back to the battlefield, he noticed a change in his Pokémon. Previously exhausted from the trials she endured since she was sent out to battle, Smoochum now glowed with a radiant energy; her determined expression proved she had been connected with Conway's thoughts and emotions the whole time. Consequently, she was the only one who understood what Conway had just experienced. Despite never truly knowing Paul, Smoochum was fully dedicated to proving that apparition of the negative trainer wrong… not only for her trainer's sake, but to assure her own self-worth as well.

This gave Conway the courage to tell the truth. "A voice in my head!" was his eventual answer; blunt and honest. "I apologize for that, Gardenia," he said earnestly. "But I'm ready to finish this battle. Get ready, Smoochum!"

Smoochum chirped out energetically in agreement, but was cut off when Cacnea, who had since made a successful climb back up to Smoochum's level, made a sudden frightful attack upon Gardenia's command: "Faint Attack!"

The Dark-typed move left some serious damage on the Kiss Pokémon, the power strong enough to knock her off the branch. Thankfully for the challengers, there was another branch not far below that was sturdy enough to maintain Smoochum's weight, but Conway grew rightfully concerned. One more hit like that and Smoochum would be unable to battle, no matter how determined she was to prove her strength. Despite taking the hit, though, the glowing energy surrounding Smoochum had not dissipated.

"Smoochum!" Conway called out before realizing the oddity of the lingering aura. "What in the world…?" He had assumed that was just some symbolic way of showing that he and Smoochum were on the same page, but now he was genuinely clueless.

"Now what is _that?_" Barry wondered out loud, squinting at the tiny Pokémon recovering on the lower branch. "Some kind of energy for sure..." he mused before pausing, doing a double-take, and then slapping his palm over his forehead. "Aww! Now come _on!_ Don't tell me that little thing's gonna evolve and turn the battle around that way! That's so cliché! The only one who can pull a dumb twist like that and make it cool is Paul!"

Gardenia, however, had a different interpretation. "No, I don't think Smoochum's evolving," she said with caution in her tone. "This looks more like sheer determination… like powering up some kind of super-charged move or something. But which move…" She quickly assumed it would be Powder Snow, Smoochum's only true effective move, and decided to take action before it came to that. "Cacnea, Drain Punch! Let's go!"

Before Conway could even fully call out a command to dodge, Smoochum did so of her own accord. She leaped to a higher branch, which left the Cactus Pokémon with nothing to smash its fist into. The fist still glowed, however, showing that it had not spent the attack.

"Try it again!" Gardenia called out. She displayed some incredibly sharp reflexes as the battle approached its climax. Cacnea jumped towards the higher branch Smoochum landed on, but once again, before Conway could even get out two full words for a command, the Kiss Pokémon acted independently, faking a turn towards the trunk of the tree before veering off in the other direction at the last second. Consequently, this put Cacnea in the position Conway wanted it: the Cactus Pokémon's own overabundance of power becoming its weak point as its prickly arm became stuck in the trunk.

"It's like Smoochum's reading my mind," Conway quietly noted to himself, unsure if he should be ecstatic that his Pokémon got her second wind or if he should be worried that his commands were suddenly no longer being taken into consideration. She was doing what Conway would have commanded regardless, which made it hard to tell whether or not Smoochum was truly acting on her own.

Meanwhile, Gardenia flailed about as she soon found Cacnea completely helpless like this. "Oh no, oh _no!_ Cacnea, please please please shake yourself free! Come on, now!"

It was easier said than done, as Cacnea had stuck its arm in a rather inconvenient spot in the tree. There was no comfy branch to land on below it, nor were there any of its spikes from its Pin Missile attacks to grab onto.

This was it; now or never, Conway had to use this opening to get the final decisive blow. "Now's your chance, Smoochum! Powder Sn—"

Smoochum used Sing instead.

"—Or Sing, whatever floats your boat," the confused trainer muttered. Luckily for both of them, Sing worked its magic this time and Cacnea was lulled into a deep sleep. Gardenia could only look on helplessly, Barry watched with morbid interest in Smoochum suddenly not listening to her trainer, and Conway just tried to roll with it as best he could. "Um, alright, Cacnea's asleep now. Good job. Now, about that Powder Snow…"

There was still no Powder Snow. The overflow of energy radiating from Smoochum's entire being was still very much present, however, leaving everyone clueless as to what this truly meant. But now the power the Kiss Pokémon had been holding within her started to come out in a way that no one could have predicted: a translucent apparition of Smoochum, something like a shadow, emerging from the true Pokémon in the flesh. Smoochum held her stubby little arms out wide as the shadow flew out of the host body and straight towards the sleeping Cacnea. Everyone gaped as the shadow flew straight through Cacnea's body like a ghost. Though it was already asleep, it was apparent that Cacnea was visibly tormented, as if its own energy was being sucked dry from its body. That much was confirmed when the others saw Smoochum receive an abundance of energy after her shadow had passed through Cacnea, resulting in her looking almost completely refreshed, whereas Cacnea, still with an arm stuck in the tree, obviously had nothing left to give. The swirl patterns of its eyes told that much.

Yoko, one of Gardenia's assistants of the Eterna Gym and acting referee for this match adjusted her glasses at the scene before making her call, "Cacnea is unable to battle! Smoochum wins this round, so Colin the challenger wins!"

"Unbelievable!" Barry exclaimed as slammed his hands down on his seat before standing up. "What just happened?!"

"I… I won…?" Conway was still dumbfounded, even after the renewed Smoochum slid down the tree and hopped right into her trainer's arms, cheering and celebrating all the while. "But what just happened…?"

"Hey, don't steal my line, bub!" Barry barked out at Conway. "I oughta fine you for that… in fact, I think I will!"

Gardenia didn't address her challenger until she successfully returned Cacnea to its Pokéball and gave it some encouraging words for all its effort. She looked up at the befuddled Conway with a smile, finding it endearing that even after earning a victory, the young man's concerns first and foremost lied within how exactly he won and what happened to Smoochum to make things turn out the way they did, rather than reveling in his win over a Gym Leader. "Well, Colin, if you and Barry want to figure out what happened, review the details! By process of elimination, I'm sure you'll reach a conclusion," she suggested. Though she had a strong idea of what happened already, she liked giving the extra challenge of making her opponents figure things out on their own.

"Uh, right," Conway stammered, looking down at his lively Smoochum while Barry made his way down to the battlefield to meet up with his traveling companion. "Well, whatever was glowing around Smoochum disappeared once Cacnea was knocked out…"

"That definitely wasn't a Powder Snow, Sweet Kiss, or Confusion attack," Barry deduced, still quite skeptical about this win Conway earned. "So the move was totally a new one."

"I realized that much right away," Conway said with a sneer, not caring for Barry's intrusion. "That was the easy part."

Gardenia cheerfully interjected before Barry could blow up at his friend again. "Right! So think about the kind of moves Smoochum can learn, and maybe think of anything strange that happened before the move was used."

"I'll tell you what's strange!" Barry blurted out. "That Smoochum had to make a big deal out of this when it could've just taken out Cacnea with a Powder Snow while it was stuck. Why bother with Sing? Cacnea was already helpless."

Conway shook his head. "Smoochum wouldn't have done that for no reason. There is a move that requires the opponent to be asleep in order to work, but…" He paused just then, gaping at his still cheerful Pokémon. "No way. Don't tell me that was Dream Eater!"

"That's what I figured it was," Gardenia piped up while Smoochum nodded happily to her trainer. "A really strong Psychic-type move for sure!"

"One of the strongest…" Conway uttered as he tried to process this. "But as I recall, that's not a move Smoochum learns naturally; it has to be taught and trained in order to use it."

Gardenia shrugged. "Sometimes in life, stuff happens and it doesn't make much sense at first. But I'll share a little secret with you guys: event though I had to train Cacnea a lot in order for it to master Drain Punch, the moment it was first able to use the move happened all on its own. That's when I knew Cacnea was a really special Pokémon. I think if your bond with your Pokémon is strong enough, you'll get rewarded with surprises like this whenever your Pokémon's in a pinch!"

That was when Conway realized he witnessed such a phenomenon before: during his last battle with Paul, when Paul's Honchkrow learned Sucker Punch at the height of its tension. Back then, Conway knew such an occurrence was an oddity and never actually figured out how that happened. Now it finally made sense; Conway had been around Paul long enough to learn that there was indeed a bond between Paul and his Pokémon – solidly proven when Conway found them all surrounding their trainer in the frozen depths of Route 216, keeping him warm and alive long enough to be rescued. Nearly all of them sustained damage from the harsh elements because of this, but not one of Paul's Pokémon regretted their decision to stay by his side. Conway saw right through the façade of Paul pretending he couldn't care less for his Pokémon… yet another reminder for the intellectual that his former companion was not really a bad person despite his actions.

Part of him wished Paul was here to witness this victory (especially after suffering a mental episode of Paul haunting him)… not only to redeem himself for his past blunders, but to see Paul have to eat his words. The sentiments were both endearing and spiteful.

"Thank you for putting that into perspective, Gardenia," Conway said to the Gym Leader. "I think I see what you're talking about, and that's quite amazing. You helped bring out Smoochum's full potential… I feel indebted to you, honestly."

"You wanna know what you could do to make us even?" Gardenia asked her humble challenger.

Conway shrugged. "Of course."

And then, the beast within was unleashed.

"Show me one of your Grass-type Pokémon! Any Grass-type will do; I'm not picky! _Please,_ I must see any Grass-type you have…!"

The seemingly calm, rational, and informative Gardenia suddenly transformed into something… far less professional – and borderline psychotic.

"Well, um," Conway stammered, taking a cautious step back away from the raving Gym Leader. This put him in a very awkward position. "I'm sorry, but I don't have any Grass-type Pokémon yet."

"HUH?!" Gardenia immediately looked heartbroken, giving the young trainer the most disturbing puppy dog eyes. "Say it isn't so! How can you not have a Grass-type?! They're so _wonderful!_ That's what I was looking forward to the most, you know! Not the battle, but the opportunity to meet another trainer's Grass-type Pokémon! Come on, tell me you're joking!"

That warranted another step back away from the Grass-type enthusiast. "Unfortunately, I'm not," Conway admitted. "Besides the three Pokémon I battled you with, all I have is Slowking, Aggron, Castform, and Lickilicky."

"And for all those Pokémon captures you made, you never _once_ thought that maybe you should catch a Grass-type?!" Gardenia wailed.

"I haven't exactly had the time to think much about Grass-types specifically," was Conway's excuse. It was true, at least. Taking care of Paul for a month, then undertaking a mission to expose his cousin for his nefarious deeds left Conway with not much time to fancy what Pokémon he'd like to capture after his fated meeting with Smoochum. Lickilicky and Shuckle were captures purely for strategic purposes as Conway went from Gym Leader to Gym Leader. "But, um, how about I bring you one the next time I come to Eterna City? Depending on which Gym Leader I take on next, I might just be in need of a Grass-type after all…"

With an overly dramatic sigh of resignation, Gardenia hung her head with disappointment and despair. "Okay… I guess there's not much you can do if you really don't have one to show me…" If she didn't come off as so utterly bonkers, Conway would've felt sorry for her.

"But all hope is not lost just yet!" Gardenia suddenly proclaimed; her eyes beaming with hope and joy. She looked to Conway's annoyed and impatient companion. "Barry, you still have your Roserade, right?"

Now it was Barry's turn to be put in an awkward spot. "Uh, yeah…"

"Let me see it! Let me see it!" Gardenia begged as if she were a young child bothering her mother for candy or a new toy. "I'd love to see how much your Roserade's grown since I last saw it! Ooh, if mine wasn't worn out right now I'd so have our Roserades battle! You know, to see which one is the most powerful!"

"Well, it's obvious my Roserade would win," Barry said matter-of-factly, despite his unease around the Gym Leader. "But _fine_, you can see it." For once Barry wasn't going to be difficult about this, if only because the threat/promise of acupuncture Gardenia made to him remained fresh in his mind… and he's witnessed said "acupuncture therapy" from Gardenia's Cacnea done to herself. It looked horrifying and anything _but_ therapeutic.

Conway wisely decided not to speak up as he heard the auburn-haired teen squeal with joy. He watched Barry reluctantly toss up one of his Pokéballs, which brought out his Roserade.

"Alright, just a quick look at Roserade," Barry wanted to set some ground rules as soon as possible. Conway figured Barry's first meeting with Gardenia left some mental scars that had yet to fade if he was being so uncharacteristically cautious, yet firm. "And no funny business, got that? We're running on a tight schedule, y'know!"

"I understand; you two must be awfully busy if you're trying to get eight badges before the Sinnoh League rolls around," Gardenia acknowledged, wasting no time in cuddling Barry's Roserade. "So Colin, once I give you the Forest Badge, how many more do you need before you qualify?"

Conway opened up his badge case, eyeing the empty slot that would soon be filled by the Forest Badge. "Your badge will be my fourth, so that officially puts me at the halfway point."

"You realize we're gonna have to step up our pace if we're both gonna have eight badges before it's time for the League," Barry reminded. "And you're nuts if you think I'm gonna let you hold me back."

"Well, from here, there's a number of different ways you could go for your next badge," Gardenia informed them. "Depending on which ones you have already, that is."

Figuring it would be helpful to get a solid idea of where to go next (as he had a habit of being indecisive at times) without having to waste time going back to Hearthome City solely for Barry's sake, Conway showed Gardenia his badge case with the Cobble, Fen, and Relic Badges. "I've already defeated Maylene, Crasher Wake, and Fantina," he informed her.

"Well, I'm _gonna_ beat Fantina real soon!" Barry interjected, showing off his own badge case. "She's just hard to track down, you know?" Conway resisted the urge to throw in a remark that Barry also lost against her twice. "See, I got your Forest Badge, Byron's Mine Badge, Amber's Flare Badge, and Mako's Virus Badge! I'm on a roll and Fantina's number is gonna be up soon enough!"

"Wow, you must've been all over Sinnoh already to get those badges," Gardenia remarked, clearly impressed as she took a gander at Barry's orange badge case. "Byron's Gym is pretty far out there, even from where we are now. I remember Domino City being tricky to get to; did you take the ferry through Sea Route 220 to challenge Amber?"

Barry shrugged nonchalantly. "No biggie; for a boat ride it wasn't _too_ bad. Besides, I always wanted to see Pal Park. And being the master of managing my time, I waited until _after_ I beat Byron to challenge Mako."

"That's the Cronobane City Gym, right?" Conway asked for clarification. "Which, as I recall, is on Waning Moon Island… the best way to get there _would_ be from Canalave City's port…"

"Right," Barry affirmed. "So the moral of the story is that I'm awesome!"

"Of course," Conway mumbled, rolling his eyes. He turned to Gardenia, who wisely chose not to make a remark to Barry's ego-stroking statement. "So what gym would you suggest for the fifth Badge, Gardenia?"

The Gym Leader had turned to Yoko, who had left to retrieve Conway's reward. The assistant handed over the small casing, which Gardenia smiled and nodded to Yoko in silent gratification before addressing her challenger. "Well, Colin, it's hard to say," she admitted. "If you and Barry are traveling together, you'll need to pick a way that's convenient for both of you; a gym that neither of you have challenged yet." Then an idea suddenly came to her, "How about stopping by the Pokémon Center before you go? Colin's Pokémon could use the rest, and Nurse Joy's usually good for consultation as to where to go next in your journey."

"Fair enough, but we better not stick around too long!" Barry warned. "We're on a tight schedule, y'know!"

Gardenia approached Conway, presenting him the case bearing the metallic green badge in the very center. "Then, Colin, as proof of your victory today, I'd like you to accept the Forest Badge! I trust you'll take good care of it."

Conway nodded, quite enthusiastic as he plucked the badge out and placed it in his badge case. "Marvelous! I now have the Forest Badge," he exclaimed. "Four badges down; four to go!"

"Fantastic, good for you," Barry muttered, not nearly as excited for Conway's progress. "Now let's get out of here already!"

"_Aw,"_ Gardenia whined, somehow already down on her knees on the ground with Barry's Roserade right behind her. "Not even one more Poison Jab for the road…?"

"**NO!"**

* * *

Though Conway was making excellent progress despite his late start, Paul was not able to revel in victory just yet. Even though he was doing much better against Candice this time than his last attempt, the spunky Gym Leader proved to be tough customer – just as Reggie said she would be.

This time, it was Candice's Snover versus Paul's Gliscor. With Honchkrow and Ursaring barely being of any use after the punishment they took from Candice's last two Pokémon, Paul was left resting his hopes on his last two Pokémon. However, both of them suffered the most devastating weakness to ice due to their dual typing, meaning neither would last long if they took too many direct hits from Ice-type attacks. Unfortunately, Paul's specialty in battling was having Pokémon that excelled in taking hits just as well as they could attack… meaning Paul had no choice but to deviate from his usual formula to earn that long-awaited win.

Thankfully, Gliscor was the most mobile of Paul's chosen team next to Honchkrow, and since Paul made the effort to ensure that Candice would only have a minimal advantage on her icy field (which was more and more looking like a giant black mess with the dark pools of melted water steadily growing in size), the Fang Scorp Pokémon had no trouble dodging most of Snover's moves.

"Now, Gliscor! Use Fire Fang!" Paul ordered the moment he saw an opening, knowing Fire-type moves were to Snover as Ice-type moves were to his own Pokémon. The writhing of the Frost Tree Pokémon was a good sign – it meant Gliscor scored a valuable direct hit.

Candice grimaced slightly, though only briefly. She was in full business mode from here on out, knowing her last two Pokémon would have to make short work Paul's if she wanted to be on a more even level with him. While happy that Paul was performing to his standards, Candice herself would be feeling very inadequate as a Gym Leader if she happened to be completely shut out without scoring a single win.

"We feel the burn!" Candice declared as she pointed directly towards the battle. "It's too close to dodge now; Ice Beam, Snover!"

She was right; Fire Fang was a close-ranged attack. Snover did not hesitate to cease the burning agony by shooting Ice Beam straight at the problem. Combined with the flames of the Fang Scorp Pokémon's attack, the collision resulted in a blast of steam, followed by an explosion that sent both Pokémon sliding back against the especially slick battlefield. Gliscor too suffered a direct hit from the element it was most vulnerable to, and Paul grew increasingly concerned with his chances in this match-up. Gliscor had otherwise performed quite well, especially with its weight and ferocity aiding in the continued assault on the battlefield. However, the margin for error in this overall challenge slimmed nearly to zero; Gliscor wouldn't be able to take more than a couple of hits from Ice-type attacks, and the neutral Grass-type moves Snover had chipped away at its strength even more.

The problems were bound to escalate if Paul had to resort to using Torterra. Despite his personal alterations to Conway's strategic suggestions, Paul fully intended to remain faithful to one instruction Conway wrote down: only use Torterra if there are no other options. Despite being Paul's strongest Pokémon, it was undoubtedly the biggest weakness of his team for this specific challenge. Ursaring possessed no weakness to the ice and had many useful moves to counter it; Honchkrow was vulnerable to ice, but it too had a variety of moves to make up the difference and was the biggest player in Paul's scheme to decimate the battlefield. Plus, it helped that Honchkrow was the most agile of this particular selection, and being airborne did have its advantages. Gliscor had at least that _and_ a good number of moves that were more than capable of turning the tables despite its crippling ice vulnerability.

Now that Paul knew exactly what he would be up against for the rest of the challenge (Abomasnow was a given from the start, after all), he realized Torterra would have its work cut out for it if the Continent Pokémon became Paul's only hope for defeating Candice. Along with the devastating ice weakness, Torterra wouldn't be doing much moving at all – leaving the matter of dodging attacks out of the question. Worst of all, against a Grass/Ice-type Pokémon (which Snover and Abomasnow both were), Torterra only had one move that would prove effective. To utilize Torterra safely, Paul needed Candice on the ropes.

"Steel Wing; let's go!" Paul did not want to miss a beat here. Gliscor recovered and flew straight past Snover, letting its empowered wings graze the Frost Tree Pokémon as it passed by.

"Icy Wind!" Candice was also focused; intent on not wasting a single opportunity. Snover felt the hit from Steel Wing, but recovered in time to turn around and blast its opponent with a fierce, frigid current before said opponent could get too far away. Gliscor's attempt to ascend into the air was blocked as Icy Wind took its toll on the battle-worn Pokémon, as it fell to the ground with a loud thud.

Paul's hands balled into fists as he tried his hardest to control his emotions. "Get up, Gliscor!"

Gliscor was still able to battle, evident as it managed to stand up on its own. However, when trying to balance itself on its tail (a common habit of the species), Gliscor was unable to maintain form and fell back to its feet. This visibly worried Paul. "Come _on_, Gliscor! Why can't you…" Then it struck him, once he paid attention to his Pokémon.

Gliscor's wings were stiff. Even more alarming were the patches of ice that coated its wings.

"Playing with ice is just like playing with fire," Candice taunted, knowing exactly what happened. "If you aren't careful, you'll get burned… or in Gliscor's case, frozen!" Paul grimaced at having to face the situation. "Let's see how you manage with that extra handicap! Snover, use Bullet Seed!"

"Block it!" This was all Paul knew to do in a scenario like this for the moment. Luckily the Fang Scorp Pokémon's large claws were more than capable of sustaining the blow, but the fact that Candice called for Bullet Seed and not an Ice-type move told Paul she was making him realize his situation before she would finish off this battle.

Zoey had been getting into these battles more and more as she observed both trainers' strategies and how they were executed. Still, she couldn't hide her smirk whenever Candice got the upper-hand. "Well, that's one match for Miss Senior in the bag," she figured. "Having that aerial mobility was the only way Gliscor managed to land all its attacks without getting hit back too much. If Gliscor can't fly, then it's finished."

"You'd better hope Gliscor can block ice attacks as well as it can with Bullet Seed!" Candice called out with a smirk. "Snover, I think it's time for another Ice Beam!"

Paul's eyes snapped wide open as he heard the call. There was another detail Paul took note of while Candice coyly taunted him, and it was his only hope to get an opening to fix this mess. "Counter it! X-Scissor!"

Gliscor's blocking maneuver involved the Fang Scorp Pokémon crossing its arms over its body; this happened to be the exact position to execute X-Scissor. Having already taken the form inadvertently, Gliscor was able to use X-Scissor quickly enough to intercept Ice Beam.

The resulting explosion sent both Pokémon sliding away from each other over the ice. Now that the Pokémon were quite distanced from each other, Paul had an opportunity to turn this battle around. However, one problem remained: Gliscor's wings were still frozen. In order to land any attack well, Gliscor would have to be right next to Snover, left wide open for a dangerous counterattack. Paul glared at the frozen wings of his Pokémon as Gliscor looked back to its trainer for the next command.

Just then, Paul was fortunate enough to be struck with another idea; this time one that would remedy Gliscor's situation. However… it would be quite the controversial move and Paul knew he would be getting a lot of flak for even issuing the command.

Luckily for Paul, he didn't really care what anyone else thought of him or his methods. "Alright, Gliscor, listen up. I want you to use Fire Fang… on _yourself._" Gliscor tensed up as expected to be issued such a command, but it quickly understood why it had to be done.

"_What?!_" an infuriated Zoey shouted; obviously she didn't immediately realize why anyone would do this. "What kind of trainer would make their Pokémon do such a thing?! Only a _monster!_"

"Zozo…" Candice quietly mumbled; the controversial command distracting her as she tried her best not to judge Paul outright as her friend just did. That was one benefit to this choice Paul made; it would go off without a hitch because of its controversial nature that would make anyone else double-take.

The other benefit – the important one – eventually became apparent to both the Coordinator and the Gym Leader as they watched Gliscor follow its order; specifically, Gliscor's flaming fangs bite down into its wings. Paul's Pokémon couldn't help whining in pain of its own self-inflicted attack, but both it and Paul knew the pain was worth it: the steam and drops of water pouring down the wings were proof that the sketchy technique was a success: Gliscor's wings were no longer frozen.

"Wow, talk about a blow to the mind," Candice remarked, resting a hand on her forehead. "I never would have come up with that…"

"So that was his angle," Zoey murmured, still quite sour that this happened at all. "What a guy; he'd do just anything to win."

Paul paid no mind to the comments, seizing his opportunity to clinch this match. "Gliscor, Guillotine!"

A simultaneous "Uh-oh!" came from both Candice and Zoey once the call was made. Gliscor shook off its lingering pain and lunged forward with one arm extended towards the intended target. Paul didn't need to tell Gliscor to be quick and flawless in this execution of the move; the Fang Scorp Pokémon knew very well the risk it was taking, but there was no better time to give it a shot.

Candice was unable to make a full call before witnessing her Snover being scooped up with Gliscor's massive claw and swept high up into the air. So far so good for Paul; he rarely had Gliscor use Guillotine, and for good reason: it was a very difficult move to pull off with an extremely wide margin for error. Should it go off without a hitch, the battle would immediately be over – whether the victim was weak and inexperienced like Ash's Gligar was, or any one of Cynthia's magnificent Pokémon, they would be instantly knocked out.

"Use Ice Beam to break yourself free!" Candice was determined to not let this happen. Both she and Zoey knew exactly what the Guillotine move was about, and the Gym Leader fully intended to exploit the relative ease of making the move fail. It was especially a breeze considering the massive type advantage she had along with the fact that Gliscor was in close range again and had no way to dodge any of Snover's moves now. The Frost Tree Pokémon was fully capable of shooting an Ice Beam in point-blank range before Gliscor had a chance to slam it down.

And that was all that needed to be done; Gliscor suffered a critical hit from its greatest elemental weakness, which was more than enough to break its concentration as well as its hold on Snover. Gliscor was sent careening into the field next to Paul while Snover safely landed on the opposite side. This was the worst possible way for this plan to fail, and Paul couldn't help growling in frustration as he turned his attention to where his Pokémon landed. "No…!"

"Whew, that was a close one," Candice sighed as she wiped her brow. "This battle sure has been full of surprises; too bad Gliscor's down for the count. I would've liked to try more ways to counter all those awesome moves it has."

"Gliscor's not done yet!" Paul retorted, glaring at her. Though definitely hanging by a thread by this point, Gliscor indeed managed to rise to its feet. Despite surviving such a devastating blow, everyone soon noticed the consequences of taking that risky move: Gliscor was no longer able to get airborne again.

"Gliscor definitely _looks_ done," Zoey noted. "It can't fly again; why go through the trouble of damaging your own Pokémon if it was just going to get its wings frozen again a minute later?"

Candice shook her head as she closely examined her challenger's Pokémon. "No, its wings didn't freeze again… Snover hit Gliscor in the front with Ice Beam this time." She watched Paul hopelessly mutter Gliscor's name as it continued its futile attempts to fly before tiring itself out and resigned any further tries.

It was clear as day to Paul what was wrong with Gliscor; not willing to have his Pokémon take any more senseless risks, he pulled out Gliscor's Pokéball and recalled it without saying a word.

Zoey was still cross at Paul, but she nodded in agreement to his current decision. "If its wings were fine, then the only other explanation is that Gliscor's so worn out that it doesn't have the energy to fly. So that just put Paul back at square one; nice to see even _he_ has his limits when it comes to overworking his Pokémon."

The Coordinator was correct: Paul saw no sense in keeping Gliscor out there in its current condition. The gamble Paul took backfired big time, which left him with precious few options for what to do from here. Thankfully, Candice's Snover was far from being in top form after all the damage it sustained from Gliscor's extremely effective attacks. This was the primary reason for Paul deciding against simply leaving Gliscor out to get clobbered on the next move.

As he drew out another Pokéball, Paul closed his eyes in resignation that this next move of his would likely not hold out as he wanted it to… as well as bring about the inevitable rebuking he would be hearing from his opinionated observer. "Honchkrow, stand by for battle!"

A short time's rest was better than no rest at all, but that didn't change the fact that the Big Boss Pokémon came out looking extremely worn down and barely in any condition to battle.

"I should've known he'd pull something like this if I granted him a compliment," Zoey growled as quietly as she could. "How could he do that to Honchkrow after everything it's been through?!"

At first, Candice was visibly concerned to see Honchkrow back on the field so soon, but the Gym Leader managed a smile upon seeing the resolve in the bird's eyes. "Paul, you've definitely raised your Pokémon well; don't let anybody else tell you different. I can see just from looking at Honchkrow that its kiai flame is not easy to snuff out, even after it's taken quite the beating!" She looked up at Paul and smirked. "Having said that, though, I'm gonna be honest with you: I see your angle here. I know it'd be super awesome to have Honchkrow get its second wind and save the day, but you and I both know that's just not gonna happen."

Paul did not reply. Candice catching on so quickly to his motive wasn't much of a surprise at all, and he was not about to delude himself into thinking Honchkrow was going to come out on top of this match despite having less of a handicap than Gliscor. Someone like Ash might be deluded enough to believe such a thing, but a staunch realist like Paul knew better than to set himself up for disappointment.

Instead, he opted to cut straight to the chase. "Honchkrow! Sky Attack; let's go!"

Despite being quite the blabbermouth in her own right, Candice did prefer her opponents to be less about talking and more about action, and she had the quick reaction time to keep up the pace with them. "Think again! Snover, use Icy Wind!"

It was inevitable that Icy Wind would hit first due to Sky Attack's mandatory charge time, but Paul threw caution to the wind in spite of this obstacle, silently urging his Pokémon to pull through despite the inevitable pain that would come of it. The concept of pain abruptly became the center of Paul's life now – he would be struggling with pain every day for the rest of his life – and he was not the only one who wished for his Pokémon to understand this. Each of Paul's Pokémon were fully aware of Paul's ailment; through the course of the ten-day training session, they all admired Paul's resolve that not only kept him from giving up, but was maintained perfectly enough to keep his secrecy from his family over the matter. The suffering and struggling Paul endured made all of his Pokémon desire the same strength, and Honchkrow was no exception.

Honchkrow didn't need a verbal command from Paul to know what to do; in its current state, the Big Boss Pokémon knew the only reason it was sent out to battle again despite is severely battered condition was that Paul was desperate. Honchkrow knew it was meant to go out with a bang, not only to prove its own worth, but to aid its comrades.

Candice's bravado gave way to sheer tension as she saw the plump bird force its way through her Snover's Icy Wind barrage – the nearly blinding white aura of energy surrounding Honchkrow allowing it to persevere against the harsh elements – and plow itself straight into Snover. The clash of energies triggered another explosion; a strong, hot one that consequently kicked up a great deal of steaming fog from the battlefield. Visibility for all human beings in attendance was hindered, and they had no choice but to wait for it to clear to see what became of the two Pokémon in the heart of the blast.

Sadly, yet unsurprisingly, Honchkrow was seen on the field, huddled over and unmoving. Snover was also knocked over, able to at least sit up. Still, it was quite worse for wear after taking such a powerful attack. It was hard to say whether or not Honchkrow's ability Super Luck came into effect here (though Paul believed if it had, Snover would have been knocked out cold), but the damage was clear to all those witnessing the battle.

"Honchkrow is unable to battle," Mr. Honcho announced. "The winner is Snover!"

Paul held in a sigh as he reached for Honchkrow's Pokéball and returned his fallen Pokémon to get some substantial rest. Though this didn't buy nearly enough time that Paul wanted, he was grateful for what Honchkrow managed to do – especially since it had the roughest time in this battle, being the only Pokémon who had faced all of Candice's so far.

Candice freely sighed out her relief that Snover pulled through against the odds. "Definitely too close for my comfort," she admitted without hesitation. "Way to hang in there, Snover. At least we're making progress now; I was starting to get a little embarrassed!"

Naturally, she was referring to this match being her first actual victory over Paul after she had already lost half of her team. While she felt more at ease, Paul's condition was the opposite. He had been in the lead the entire time, but was stuck in a position where he could easily fall behind.

"Snover, you're still in this with me, right?" Candice kindly asked her battered Pokémon, to which Snover replied with a stern nod as it rose to its feet. There wasn't much fuel left in the tank, but seeing the way Honchkrow went out deterred it from choosing the coward's way out (not that Candice would condone it, anyway).

Now it was time for Paul to weigh his options. Both girls looked over to him with intrigue as Paul now held a Pokéball in each hand, looking back and forth from one to the other and trying to decide which route to take from here. It was no secret to anyone that Snover wasn't set to last much longer on the field; the internal debate waging war in Paul's mind was how Snover should be dispatched. Gliscor had the moves that were more than capable of defeating Snover in a single hit, but Gliscor itself was badly damaged, highly susceptible to being defeated by one mere attack itself, and had very little downtime in order to recover some of its lost stamina. It was very possible that Gliscor – if it was sent out again right now – wouldn't be capable of taking Snover out before the Frost Tree Pokémon did the same in kind to it.

On the surface, Ursaring was a much more attractive option. It had taken a great deal of damage earlier in the battle, but also had a significantly greater amount of time in which to rest up. It was unlikely that Snover would be able to defeat it since it lacked a weakness to Ice-type moves, but that didn't mean Snover would be incapable of landing a scratch on Ursaring, either. In truth, Paul was seeing Ursaring for a more long-term investment: Candice's Abomasnow. It was sure to be the most challenging opponent and Ursaring was likely the best chance Paul had in defeating it… but that was far from a certainty, and if Paul used the Hibernation Pokémon to take care of Snover, then chances were high that it wouldn't be able to last against Abomasnow for very long… and that would leave the entire responsibility of winning this match up to Torterra. That was a scenario Paul did not want to have to face; he'd much rather not have to use Torterra at all if he could help it.

It wasn't just the strategic suggestions left by Conway that deterred Paul from using his starter any time sooner than when it was absolutely necessary; just thinking about a worst-case scenario where Torterra would be pitted against a relatively fresh Abomasnow gave Paul nasty memories of the training sessions with Reggie over a week ago. In all that time, it still shook Paul up every time he thought back to how easily Reggie's Infernape knocked his Torterra a mile back with a single Blast Burn attack. Paul had his emotions under much better control now, but the last thing he wanted was for history to repeat itself this soon and make all of the progress made in this battle inconsequential. If a Fire-type attack had the capability of wrecking Torterra's usually strong defenses, then an Ice-type attack would be all the worse. Unlike Gliscor, Torterra didn't have the luxury of dodging attacks, either. Once it came down to Torterra, Paul would be fighting a battle of sheer attrition that he was sure to lose.

Decisions like these were what distinguished Paul from most other trainers; even now, Paul was thinking two steps ahead rather than making calls on sheer impulse. Since Candice was certain by now what Paul's fourth Pokémon would eventually be, she felt no need to rush him in the decision-making process. She was actually quite proud of seeing Paul taking this battle so seriously, unlike their first encounter. It was a clear sign that he was taking her seriously as a Gym Leader now.

Just then, Paul pocketed away one of the Pokéballs, having made his decision as he threw the one he still held. "Gliscor, stand by for battle!"

"Welcome back, Gliscor," Candice greeted, though her smug expression betrayed the sweet tone of her voice. "Gosh, it's like you've hardly been away at all!"

"Seriously?!" Zoey exclaimed with predictable disbelief. "Paul, who do you think you are, pulling stuff like this?! You'd think you'd learn from the mistake you just made with Honchkrow a minute ago!"

While Paul just shook his head, not willing to waste any more energy or concentration on the Coordinator's biting commentary, Candice decided to speak for him – an action that was both for her challenger's benefit as well as to shake him up when she revealed how easily she read into Paul's strategy. "Now, now, Zozo," she gently said in hopes of calming her best friend. "Even if Gliscor's taken a lot of damage, what matters is that it's still willing and able to battle. It's obvious Gliscor wants to get back into the fray no matter how grim its chances are of staying in this for much longer. Paul's just playing smart about this and reserving his better-conditioned Pokémon for the _real_ fight up ahead." The Gym Leader then faced her challenger with a most devious smile, which was quite unnerving. "Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong, Paul!"

The sour look on Paul's face was all that Candice needed to know she was right. Rightfully so, Paul worried that if his tactics were becoming easier to read that his chances of coming out of the challenge on top would be next to impossible. Just like when Ash and Paul battled at Lake Acuity, Paul was quite set with his strategy once he learned what Ash's full team was. The last thing Paul wanted as to be the Ash of the battle he was currently engaged in.

"Don't waste your energy flying," Paul quietly warned his Pokémon. "This ice field is for Candice's Pokémon's benefit, but you can make use of it too. Keep your wings spread out and you should have no problem running circles around Snover."

This was very useful advice Gliscor wouldn't have come up with on its own. It winked to Paul as it got into position, balancing itself using its tail (as per usual for the species).

"Stay on defense until you find an opening," Paul added. "That way Snover won't have any time to dodge an X-Scissor attack." Of course, he was referencing an earlier point in the battle where Gliscor taking up the defensive stance of crossing its arms left it able to fire off said attack in an instant. This seemed to be the optimal route to defeating Snover for good.

"In any case, this won't take long either!" Candice said with glee. "We're on the road to evening up the score, Snover, so fight with your kiai might – whatever you've got left!" Her Snover heeded the call and prepared itself for another attack. "Now, charge ahead and use Ice Beam!"

Since Gliscor looked terribly worn out and wasn't even trying to fly this time, Candice figured the Fang Scorp Pokémon would be a sitting duck. Little did she realize Paul's plan to make the best of what he had, and was shocked to see Gliscor skating on the ice with its tail, with its wings spread out like makeshift sails on a ship to help control which way Gliscor wanted to go. With one veer to the right, Snover's Ice Beam was averted. This unusual dodging maneuver even got Zoey's attention as she studied Gliscor's moves intently.

"You're not getting away that easily!" Candice assured, sternly looking to her Pokémon. "Snover, Bullet Seed!"

"Keep dodging!" was Paul's simple command. It pleased the trainer seeing Gliscor swerving from side to side in order to avoid the barrage of Snover's attack, leaving only the ice itself to be Bullet Seed's victim. More and more, Candice's once-glorious battlefield resembled something unspeakably ugly; stained black almost everywhere, the ice formations shattered into rubble, which made the terrain much trickier to skate over in addition to the heat and impact of the numerous attacks throughout the battle making the terrain increasingly unstable. Cracks were becoming widespread and the dark puddles were only growing in size, but were not imminently noticeable due to the black coating from Haze making everything harder to make out. Luckily for Gliscor, its thick tail had no problem mowing over the debris it crossed over.

"Icy Wind, let's go…!" Candice was getting desperate, ordering Snover to fire off an attack at every possible opportunity, knowing that thanks to the debris and Snover's lacking stamina to skate across the ice in its own way, that there was no sensible way to chase Gliscor.

Zoey shook her head, growing concerned for her mentor. "I wish I could say something," she said to herself. "Miss Senior's having Snover attack Gliscor where it is, instead of where it's _going_ to be… this battle must really be getting to her if she hasn't noticed that."

With his talent in defensive-styled battling, Paul knew the best way to handle this scenario was to let Snover expend its energy on attacks while Gliscor's graceful ice-gliding made all of those efforts futile. Just as he expected, Snover tired itself out and had to take a quick breather before resuming the onslaught: this was the opening Paul was looking for.

"Now!" Paul shouted to his Pokémon. "Use X-Scissor!"

Before Candice could recover from her shock long enough to issue another attack, it was already too late. Gliscor collided into Snover with a direct hit from the Bug-type move. A small plume of smoke came from the area of impact, though Gliscor was soon seen sliding past it and successfully making its way back to Paul, where it finally stopped. Though still barely able to battle, the ice skating maneuver and letting the air guide the path was much less taxing on Gliscor's stamina compared to Snover's barrage of attacks. It wasn't long before the smoke cleared, and sure enough, Snover was seen lying on its back, not moving an inch.

With one look at Snover's eyes, Mr. Honcho made it official. "Snover is unable to battle; Gliscor is the winner!"

The Fang Scorp Pokémon was absolutely ecstatic, though could barely express those feelings given its own condition. It looked up to its trainer… and for once, Paul smiled (a smug one rather than an earnest one, if only to keep up appearances) and nodded to Gliscor without saying a word. This plan worked beautifully; much better than Paul had expected it to.

It seemed unusual for Candice to have a lapse in her judgment at this stage of a challenge, but Zoey soon had an idea why that was the case. "Man, a lot's happened in this battle since the beginning," she noted. "It's hard to get a read on what Paul's ultimate strategy is because he's done so many different things with each of his Pokémon. And the way he's trashed the battlefield… why he's gone this far to do it, it still doesn't make any sense. Poor Miss Senior must still be trying to find out what Paul's true motive is for that; it hasn't really made a drastic difference in how these battles played out so far. Add that to all the other strange moves he's pulled since, and…" Zoey groaned just trying to think about it. "I give up; this is making my head hurt."

"Good job, Snover," Candice congratulated as she returned Snover to its Pokéball. "You just focus on getting a good rest right now, okay? Your comrade's gonna make sure your sacrifice wasn't in vain!"

The allusion to the impending challenge of Abomasnow did much to sober down Paul's smugness. Even though he had three Pokémon (two badly injured and one major liability) to Candice's final one, it still felt like victory was a distant reach away. Despite Paul being both sick and not right in the head the last time he challenged Candice, he knew better than to believe those reasons were the sole cause of the total shut-out loss from Abomasnow alone. Paul understood how gravely he underestimated both Candice and her Pokémon last time – by this point, thankfully, Paul learned to take them seriously. With that hurdle overcome, the final obstacle between Paul and his seventh Sinnoh badge was upon him. Now that Candice established herself as a solid Pokémon Trainer, it was up to Paul to best her in spite of his self-imposed disadvantage.

"It all comes down to you, old friend," Candice said to her final Pokéball. "I'm counting on you!" She looked to Paul, and though she was the one losing so far (if only numbers were concerned, anyway), the Gym Leader remained in confident, high spirits. "Well, Paul, you're definitely showing your true colors as a trainer today. This battle's given me a lot of new ideas for my next classes with my students, so thanks for the inspiration!"

Paul remained silent and resigned himself to just take the compliment.

"But now it's time to get super serious," the Gym Leader continued as her arm pulled back, in position to toss the Pokéball. "Time to show your stuff, Abomasnow…!" Candice called out as she threw the Pokéball, and once again, Paul and his Pokémon were met face-to-face with the frigid beast that humiliated him last time.

"Miss Senior's trump card!" Zoey cheered, excited to see her mentor's strongest Pokémon finally up to bat. "It's sure to even the odds!"

The uncertain and battle-worn Gliscor glanced back to its trainer. Paul knew there was no point in recalling Gliscor now; it simply lacked the strength to be of any use as a back-up or a stall for time. "There's nothing you can do but give it your best shot," Paul bluntly told his Pokémon. He didn't intend to come off as mean by saying this, and the Fang Scorp Pokémon knew its trainer was simply being honest. "Whether or not you land a hit on Abomasnow, no one's going to say you didn't do everything you could to pull through."

Paul looked to Abomasnow just then, who looked as if it would attack at ay moment, before giving his last order to Gliscor. "When you get close, use Fire Fang," he muttered before resuming his upright stance to stare down his opponents. "Now go, Gliscor!"

With its wings spread out and its tail acting as a makeshift skating utility like the last battle, Gliscor made a beeline for Abomasnow.

"Right, we got this," Candice said with certainty. "You ready, Abomasnow?"

The Frost Tree Pokémon uttered a low grumble in response before going back to keep a sharp eye on Gliscor's movements. As Gliscor swiftly closed the gap between it and Abomasnow, that was Paul's cue to give the signal. "Fire Fang!"

The Fang Scorp Pokémon opened its mouth with flames spewing out, alerting the much larger opponent that it was time to act. Candice wanted to face Paul's last two Pokémon with Abomasnow as fresh as possible, so she wasn't about to let her opponents get a freebie just for kicks; especially when said freebie was an extremely devastating Fire-type move. "Not a chance!" she exclaimed. "Abomasnow, use Wood Hammer! Stop Gliscor cold in its tracks!"

Abomasnow raised a hefty arm – the green end of it glowed with energy of a deep turquoise hue – and with flawless timing, slammed its appendage over the back of Gliscor's neck… where it was literally inches away from chomping down on Abomasnow's frosty body. A powerful blow like that hitting a vital, vulnerable point on Gliscor's body stopped it cold; Fire Fang was diminished, and shortly after the Pokémon itself collapsed before the mighty beast of northern Sinnoh.

"Gliscor is unable to battle, and the winner is Abomasnow!"

Rather than being concerned for Gliscor, Paul was concerned with a detail most trainers wouldn't think to take notice to: Abomasnow not flinching or showing any signs of damage after using Wood Hammer – a move that gives recoil damage to the user after damaging an opponent, similar to Brave Bird and Volt Tackle. This was a sign that Abomasnow was not only immensely powerful, but quite the tank despite its myriad of elemental weaknesses thanks to its typing.

"Heh, that sure didn't last long," Zoey said with a wry smile. "Abomasnow's as powerful as ever." Seeing it take down Paul's Pokémon at least helped the Coordinator feel better about the outcome of her own battle with Candice that took place shortly after Paul and Brandon's battle several days ago in this very gym. Despite her skill, Candice's Abomasnow made short work of Zoey's Glameow.

This Abomasnow was a menace to Pokémon Trainers and Coordinators alike.

"Gliscor, return," Paul muttered as Gliscor was recalled to its Pokéball. It wasn't Gliscor losing to Abomasnow that had him so downtrodden, of course, but rather the new information about his opponent that he had to face. Having almost died the last time he faced off against this Abomasnow, the details of this Pokémon were somewhat of a blur in Paul's memory. He remembered his Pokémon going down in no less than four hits… taking that into consideration now, Paul cursed himself for not realizing earlier that Candice's strongest Pokémon would not be taken out with raw power alone, unlike the other opponents he defeated. Paul had excelled in countering speedy (but much frailer) Pokémon like Ash's, but when it came to bulky defensive types with extraordinary stamina like many of his own… it was clear Paul had his work cut out for him even more than he had initially thought.

Though Gliscor failed to land a hit on Abomasnow, it served its purpose well in surviving long enough to prevent any other Pokémon from having to dispatch Snover before facing its evolved form. With only two options left to use, Paul thought the most sensible approach was to have Abomasnow's defenses chipped away as much as possible in order to land any devastating blows. In order to pull that off, he needed a bulky Pokémon that would be able to handle the counterattacks from the Frost Tree Pokémon. Thankfully, both Ursaring and Torterra fit the bill – but between the two, there was no doubt which Paul was going to rest his hopes of winning with.

"Ursaring, stand by for battle!"

The Hibernation Pokémon emerged, landing on the tainted and increasingly fragile ice with a mighty thud. It had much more time to recover from its wounds sustained by Sneasel near the beginning of the challenge and was more than capable of taking a few hits from Ice-type attacks, so Paul had a good feeling about his chances here. Though Ursaring let out a quiet grunt as it found it much more difficult to maintain good footing on the ice since it was last active on the field, its trainer brushed off the minor detail and paid no mind to it – not realizing he was making the same critical mistake Ash did during their full battle.

"Smart choice," Candice commended her challenger. "Of course, it's only natural that your most valuable Pokémon would be saved for my last, especially after I surprised you with my Medicham."

Zoey raised an eyebrow at the remark. "How is Miss Senior so sure that Ursaring is the MVP of Paul's team? She hasn't even seen his fourth yet…"

But she had, of course. Candice knew Torterra was Paul's fourth Pokémon; that was the only way to rationalize Paul's hesitance to use it even now; opting to use his battle-worn Pokémon instead. The Gym Leader also figured since Paul had used Honchkrow, Gliscor, and Ursaring in the first battle with her that he wouldn't switch out his own starter despite the type disadvantage. This rematch was about more than Paul proving to Candice his own competence as a Pokémon Trainer, but also to prove the strength of his Pokémon, even under the most unfavorable of conditions. If it could be done against Byron, Paul still felt he could do this to any Gym Leader he chose… though by this point he was definitely reconsidering to go back to his traditional methods once he reached the eighth Gym Leader.

"Alright! Abomasnow and I totally got this!" Candice proudly declared, twirling around as she pointed to her opponent's Pokémon. "Abomasnow, greet our friend with a nice Blizzard!"

With a powerful breath, Abomasnow attacked Ursaring from the opposite side of the field. Bone-chilling gusts of wind blew through Ursaring, who thankfully had plenty of fur to withstand that, as well as the clumps of snow that pelted it. It didn't seem like too much of a big deal, until Candice called for a nasty surprise. "Follow up with Ice Shard!"

Paul's eye's narrowed, as Ice Shard was sure to be a problem. It was a priority move like Quick Attack, so there was nothing Ursaring could do to evade it… but that did leave another option. "Quick! Use Slash!"

The command was just barely timed right; the Hibernation Pokémon managed to swipe at the menacing projectile just before it made contact with its target. Ursaring snorted with a cocky gesture as the glittering remains of Ice Shard floated about in the air around it.

"Quick thinking," Candice muttered. "Attacking from a distance doesn't really give us much of an advantage, so obviously we're gonna have to dive headfirst into the fray!" She smirked to her Abomasnow. "We want to make this a quick one, now don't we?"

Abomasnow agreed wholeheartedly, but only had time to get into position to move closer by the time Paul issued a retaliation shot. "Ursaring, use Focus Blast!" Moments later, a menacing blue ball of energy was sent flying Abomasnow's way, but Candice was not nearly as concerned as Paul wanted her to be.

"Time to go skating!" Candice decided. "Dodge it and close that gap, Abomasnow!"

Though not nearly as mobile as Candice's smaller Pokémon, the towering Ice-type menace still managed to use the advantage of its home field to evade the attack, leaving the field itself as the only recipient of the attack. That was one more crater, puddle, and mess of cracks to add to the collection the battlefield was assembling, but Candice thought nothing of it and focused entirely on putting Ursaring out of commission quickly. "Time for the test of kiai might!" Candice exclaimed with glee. "Abomasnow, give our guest a friendly nudge!"

"Use Slash when it gets close!" Paul ordered, not about to just let Ursaring get pushed around without the offender suffering a consequence. Much to his chagrin, however, his Pokémon was doomed to never regain its full strength despite the time it had to rest… this put a severe dent in its reaction time. Though it was able to lay out a Slash attack once Abomasnow was in its personal space, Abomasnow easily blocked the attack with its bulky arms and successfully shoved Ursaring from its position.

The Hibernation Pokémon simply was not meant to have good traction on icy terrain; the shove Abomasnow gave it forced Ursaring to slip and slide about before friction would finally let it slow to a stop.

Paul knew this was bound to be a problem with Ursaring, but he was determined to not let this setback completely negate everything he worked for. "Keep it steady, Ursaring!" he demanded; harsh but firm. The young trainer had so far maintained control of his emotions exceptionally well during this battle… but that would become much harder to do if he lost Ursaring here, especially if it was unable to land any significant damage on Abomasnow. The Frost Tree Pokémon casually made its way over to Ursaring; Paul could see Candice ready to call an attack any second now, and he knew he had to beat her to the punch.

"Ursaring, Hammer Arm!"

"Abomasnow, Ice Punch!"

They both called their Pokémon to attack at the same time, triggering a mighty clash of the titans: Abomasnow and Ursaring were using both arms charged with energy to make their attacks as devastating as possible, only for their massive forearms to clash with each other. Both Pokémon were locked into a battle of endurance now; each one holding their position in hopes of overwhelming one another with their still-active attacks. Hammer Arm was a Fighting-type move, effective against Ice-type moves just as well against Ice-type Pokémon – but Abomasnow's natural affinity for ice allowed its Ice Punch to persevere under the pressure of Hammer Arm.

"Keep it up, Abomasnow!" Candice cheered. "We know those kiai is the strongest here!"

"Don't you dare give in!" Paul warned Ursaring. "Your Hammer Arm should be overpowering Ice Punch easily; what's wrong with you?!"

What Paul failed to consider was certain smaller details that kept this struggle a stalemate: Abomasnow was taller and heavier than Ursaring, so the Frost Tree Pokémon had an advantage in forcing this clash of power to turn in its favor. Traction on the ice once again proved to be a factor, as Ursaring's balance on the ice became compromised the more Abomasnow forced it down – and naturally, Abomasnow had no such issues to begin with.

"We got 'em on the ropes!" Candice noted with absolute certainty. "Alright, Abomasnow! Power up that Ice Punch and win this test of might!"

Since Abomasnow already had the advantage in stature, girth, and force, it could afford to channel more power into its Ice Punch. Ursaring had no such luck, having to focus most of its energy on making sure it didn't crumble beneath its opponent's sheer power of will. Paul grit his teeth with a most sour look on his face before the collision of powers triggered an explosion.

Abomasnow slid back a few feet from the impact, but otherwise looked fine. Ursaring, however, was left face-first on the field. Thankfully, Ursaring was quick enough to raise itself up (though only on its hands and knees as best) before Mr. Honcho could rule this match a knockout. The Hibernation Pokémon looked positively _livid_ – which Paul saw as a good thing. Ursaring often was at its best while angry, and the adrenaline rush that came with such rage would hopefully be enough for this ornery Pokémon to get the job done. That's what Paul wanted to believe, anyway. It was only a pity that Paul wouldn't be able to take advantage of Ursaring's ability for this match, which would have helped his chances immensely… however, as Paul had seen numerous times before, there was literally nothing Ursaring could do if it were frozen in ice, and that was the only status effect that could be inflicted here.

"Ice Beam, let's go!" Candice was quite the opportunist, actively seizing any moment she could get her hands on to go on the offensive. Her Abomasnow was more than ready to follow up on the command, firing its attack straight at the still-recovering opponent.

Knowing there was no time for Ursaring to charge up a Focus Blast to cancel it out, Paul was forced to get creative. "Ursaring, use Slash and don't stop!" The furious Pokémon stood its ground; its anger fueled its many Slash attacks as its mighty claws tore into the attack to prevent it from landing a proper hit. While that part was a success, Ursaring's paws were both numbingly cold and partially encrusted with ice. Better its paws than the entirety of its body, Paul figured, but he had a feeling this side-effect of his hastily-made plan would be a persisting detriment to Ursaring's combat ability.

"So, Paul," Candice addressed her challenger. "Just between you and me, I really like battles where there's action _beyond_ just firing off attacks. Maybe Zozo's rubbed off on me over the years, but I made my battlefield an ice rink for a reason." Zoey smiled at the kudos she was given and knew what Candice was implying.

"If it's a skating contest you want, then forget it," Paul adamantly denied her. "Gliscor should've been more than enough to satisfy you there, and we both know a Pokémon like Ursaring isn't built for using this kind of field. We're not here to impress you with special effects; we're here to _win_."

Candice giggled at her party pooper of a challenger. "Well, I guess you have a point. Guess that means more fun for me!" And just like that, she was back in serious mode. "Alright, then. Let's see how your Ursaring can handle a little technique me and Zozo practiced back in the day: Abomasnow, Ice Shard barrage…!"

"What?!" Paul did not like the sound of that. Abomasnow skated smoothly along the ice (the hundreds of thousands of pine needles that made up its body acting as a makeshift broom to sweep away the chunks of debris that gave other Pokémon trouble earlier on) before stopping to spin in place. It only took a moment for Abomasnow to spin fast enough to appear only as a massive green and white blur to the audience – unfortunately for Paul, that moment he could have used to attack instead had to serve as an opportunity for Ursaring to crack the ice off its paws.

Once that was dealt with, Abomasnow had already initiated its attack; with expert precision, the Frost Tree Pokémon blew a series of large ice chunks each time it made a full revolution to its starting position where it faced Ursaring. Ice Shard of course was a priority attack no matter how many times it was fired off, and being deployed at this exceptionally high velocity meant Ursaring had no hope of dodging nor blocking the barrage.

Paul flinched, shielding himself from the icy shrapnel that flew his way every time an Ice Shard attack collided into Ursaring. His beastly Pokémon roared in anger and agony each time it was hit, trying its best to swat away the frigid projectiles but continuing to get injured in the process. It occurred to Paul that this was Candice's way of showing him the consequences of not playing the game her way. Abomasnow definitely looked like it could keep this up all day, and unless Ursaring started moving around like the Gym Leader wanted, then it would simply get pelted into submission by long-range attacks. For once, Paul could not afford to be stubborn.

"I get your point," he grunted before looking to his Pokémon. "Get out of there, Ursaring! Then go straight for Abomasnow!"

Ursaring was more than willing to go through with this plan; it slid across the ice outside the firing range and stumbled to swerve around and charge straight at Abomasnow. The larger Pokémon was still spinning and thus did not notice Ursaring had left until Candice shouted to him. "Stop, Abomasnow! Stop! Ursaring's coming right your way!"

But even Abomasnow was not able to recover immediately after rapidly spinning for so long; it was clearly disoriented when it managed to stop and was completely unaware of Ursaring swiftly encroaching upon it.

"Perfect," Paul murmured to himself, feeling his confidence and smugness resurface in his expression. "Now, Ursaring! Focus Blast!"

Zoey's hands tightened into fists as she watched the scene unfold, but then… something unexpected. At first she was tense; now she was just pleasantly surprised.

Ursaring indeed was on the right path to Abomasnow, and Abomasnow remained too dazed to act in accordance to Candice's wishes. Focus Blast was charged up, and it seemed inevitable that Abomasnow was due for a harsh collision from the Hibernation Pokémon followed by a critical hit from a super-effective attack.

What changed, then? Ursaring _tripped_ over the ice no more than a yard away from Abomasnow. It wasn't the debris that caused Ursaring to lose its footing, but rather the large fissure in the ice that bisected the field… made by none other than Urasring itself. In all the excitement and the dark coloration of the ice masking a great deal of the more dangerous areas on the battleground, Paul had completely forgotten about that menacing obstacle. The fissure wasn't nearly wide enough to engulf the massive Hibernation Pokémon, but it could still immobilize a large target by getting at least one limb caught in the crevice. This stopped Ursaring dead in its tracks. A deafening roar of pain and rage echoed throughout the Snowpoint Gym, almost immediately followed up with a thud when the rest of Ursaring's body was forced to fall. The rumbling aftershock from the impact was felt even by Zoey up in the stands.

Judging by Paul's horrified expression, Candice could tell he didn't mean for this to happen. Whatever plan he had for this crevice, it certainly seemed to backfire on him… meaning there was no better time to end this battle now.

"Looks like Ursaring's not going anywhere for a while," she mused, looking to her signature Pokémon (who had since recovered from its last move). "Time to send it packing, then! Abomasnow, user Wood Hammer!"

"No–!" Paul knew it was a waste of time to order for a move now; but he didn't want it to end like this. He had counted on Ursaring being his saving grace of this entire challenge; to take out Abomasnow itself… or at the very least, rough it up enough so that his final Pokémon would be able to mop up what was left.

One thunderous explosion and a moment of steam clearing later, only one thing needed to be said. "Ursaring is unable to battle, and the winner is Abomasnow!"

Now Paul was faced with a much more daunting task. As he recalled Ursaring back to its Pokéball, the trainer found it much harder to look steady or confident. It was important for him to maintain his cool; not only to throw off Candice's perceptions of how he fared against her, but to also steel himself against his body's urges to crumble under the pressure. Now that he was sick, it was much easier for him to succumb to panic attacks and various (much worse) side effects. The last thing Paul wanted was for this Gym Battle to end with him puking up blood and/or falling unconscious again; this was exactly how his win against Byron and loss against Candice ended. More than anything, Paul wanted to mark this rematch with Candice as the end of that dark era. But, he figured he should have learned by now that nothing worth achieving ever came easy. He was notably somber when he stored away Ursaring's Pokéball and pulled out the final one.

"Finally, they're evened up," Zoey expressed with excitement. "And Abomasnow barely broke a sweat taking out Gliscor and Ursaring. Now we'll finally get to see what Paul's been holding back on us all this time and–"

"Torterra, stand by for battle!"

Just like that, the Coordinator's expression changed from eager to utterly bewildered as she watched the quadruped of nearly 700 pounds appear on the battlefield. Even more audible cracks were heard as the brittle ice struggled to not completely crumble under such massive weight. "W-wait… _that's_ his last Pokémon?!"

Of course, Candice knew all along that facing Torterra again was inevitable. "Well, you officially topped Ash when it comes to surprising me, Paul," she commented in good jest. "Congratulations! Those are awesome bragging rights to have."

"_You hypocrite!"_

Both Paul and Candice looked up to the source of the shrill cry: a very infuriated Zoey. "That's right!" she declared, pointing directly at Paul. "I'm talking to _you!_ You think I forgot how rude and nasty you were to Ash back when we met, when you insulted him just because he used Grotle in a Gym Battle against Miss Senior here?!"

Honestly, Paul had expected Zoey to have better things to do than memorize every little detail of a conversation that had nothing to do with her… especially when said conversation happened well over a week ago. Like most things he deemed asinine, Paul refused to dignify Dawn's rival with an answer… though being ignored wasn't nearly enough to deter Zoey from running her mouth.

"_Using a Grass-type in an Ice-type Gym? I guess you chalked that up to blind faith,_" Zoey recited, speaking these exact words using her own personal (and intentionally exaggerated) impression of Paul. "Yet here you are, doing the exact same thing! Even worse, really! At least Grotle isn't as weak to Ice-type moves as Torterra is!"

Not even a mockery of his tone could push Paul into giving this girl the time of day. Luckily for him, Candice was there to douse the flames coming from the fiery redhead. "Now now, Zozo," she gently urged. "Even though I wasn't there whenever Paul allegedly said that, it doesn't really matter now. We know Paul and Ash are rivals now, right?" Loathe as Paul was to admit that, still. "I think I can see what's going on, and it's actually pretty admirable."

Zoey's cheeks puffed up in aggravation, not liking it one bit that Candice was taking Paul's side. "Oh yeah? What's so admirable about being a hypocrite, Miss Senior?"

"Look at it from another angle," the Gym Leader urged. "Paul's getting ready to battle me, but finds out his rival beat him to the punch, and then he learns that Ash won against me with some pretty big disadvantages across most of his team. If Paul came in today with a team that's made to totally obliterate Ice-type Pokémon, he'd probably feel like the weaker trainer for using that crutch to win against me when Ash didn't need much of an advantage! So he figures, well, if Ash was crazy enough to use Grotle against an Ice-type expert and still win, then he'll do one better and beat me using a Pokémon with an even bigger Ice-type weakness!" Candice looked to Paul with burning eyes of raw passion after going on such a tangent. "That's what this is really all about, isn't it, Paul?"

Paul _really_ didn't want to get into this, but since Candice went out of her way to vouch for him (on top of all the other favors she did for him since they met), he reluctantly played along while saying the fewest amount of words possible. "… Right."

"See, Zozo?" Candice didn't enjoy defending Paul at her best friend's expense, certainly, but the Gym Leader learned over the years how it was better to make the best out of everything – even scenarios like this where Zoey painted a very negative picture of Paul, only for Candice to interpret the perspective the opposite way. "Even a Coordinator should learn how to look at things from all sorts of different perspectives. Who knows? It might be something you'll have to do if you wanna win the Grand Festival," she said with a wink.

Zoey couldn't deny that Candice was making sense, of course. She understood what her mentor was trying to convey. She slumped back into her seat with a sigh of resignation; the Coordinator had no fuel left in her for any future outbursts for the rest of the battle. "I gotcha, Miss Senior… loud and clear." She resisted her urge to glare at Paul from the side – as far as Zoey was concerned, no amount of common sense would make her like that guy. It was a miracle in of itself that she could even have a shred of respect for him.

"Excellent," Candice said, satisfied to have that potential conflict nullified. She turned her attention back to her challenger. "So this is it, Paul: my best Pokémon against your best Pokémon. It's the final showdown."

Torterra looked back to its trainer for some kind of instruction. Experienced as it was, this scenario was hardly the usual kind Torterra was tasked with handling. But the starter Pokémon knew one thing was for certain, based on Candice's words and the fact that it was sent out to battle at all: it was Paul's last chance for winning this Gym Battle. Its comrades had already been taken out, which forced this most unfavorable matchup. Normally, Torterra was Paul's ace-in-the-hole for winning against Gym Leaders. But… this time was different. Judging from Paul's tense, apprehensive expression, Torterra could feel its trainer lacked faith in his first Pokémon being able to finish the job. The Continent Pokémon knew those feelings were not unfounded, based on the type disadvantage, the field disadvantage, and the fact that dodging any kind of attack was out of the question – this was going to be nothing more than a battle of attrition; one that went against Torterra in every possible way.

Even so… Torterra silently begged for Paul's faith and support. It had personally seen Paul sink to his lowest several days back when his training with Reggie had just started. Recovering from Infernape's Blast Burn took a while, but Torterra was determined to heal up as quickly as it could so it could resume training. Though it was painful to see Paul at rock bottom, Torterra welcomed the huge breakthrough that came of it; now the bond between Paul and Torterra was not flimsy as it was before. Paul still didn't want to play favorites with his Pokémon, but he no longer felt ashamed and weak to care about Torterra.

What convinced Torterra that its trainer changed for the better? It wasn't really the fact that it witnessed Paul breaking down into a sobbing fit after seeing his first Pokémon get blown back a mile away; it was what happened after that… the _real_ reason Torterra wanted to recover so quickly after that attack.

Paul never left Torterra's side until it recovered. He missed out on a day and a half's worth of training because of that, but he simply told the rest of his Pokémon to train on their own terms while he chose to sit with his first Pokémon and not budge from his spot until Torterra recuperated from its injuries. Literally the only time Paul left his Pokémon's side was to use the bathroom, and even then he was reluctant to do so unless someone else could watch Torterra in his place until he returned. Reggie delivered meals to his brother as well as blankets once Paul fell asleep; needless to say it warmed the elder brother's heart to see Paul this dedicated to his Torterra. He was finally accepting responsibility for his own shortcomings and caring for his Pokémon… and Reggie was the first to tell Torterra how loyal and protective its trainer had been for the entire recovery process. He apologized for not having a proper handle on his own strength that incapacitated Torterra to begin with, but of course the Continent Pokémon had no hard feelings on the matter, and both agreed that something like this _needed_ to happen… so that Paul would finally understand what he had been lacking as a Pokémon Trainer this whole time.

And the rest was history. Now that Paul had finally opened his heart to Torterra, it was only appropriate for Torterra to show that Paul was not wrong nor weak for doing so, and reward its trainer's newfound kindness and devotion by winning this battle… no matter how close to impossible it felt.

"It looks bad; I know," Paul finally said, quietly speaking to his Pokémon. "And to be honest… I wanted to replace you with some other Pokémon for this battle," he admitted, which did not surprise Torterra in the least. "What stopped me from doing that… it wasn't because I wanted to stick to the original plan." Well, that was at least _partially_ a deciding factor, but only for Conway's sake rather than Paul just being stubborn. "I kept you in this because…"

He still had trouble speaking from his heart, unsurprisingly. Luckily for Paul, Torterra's upward gaze towards its trainer seemed to indicate that it already knew what Paul was trying to say.

"Right," Paul understood, nodding with a faint (if uneasy) smile. "You already know what I mean… we both have something to prove here, don't we?"

The "Terra!" his Pokémon uttered in reply sounded gruff as usual, but oddly uplifting and inspired as well.

"So!" a familiar, high-pitched upbeat voice interrupted. "Are we all ready to start off this clash of ultimate kiai might?"

"We're ready," Paul replied, back to sounding cold and confident again. Once more, he looked down to Torterra to whisper some advice, as many plans had been set into motion since the battle started – yet very few of them had actually come into play. "Stone Edge is pivotal to our success, but for now, don't worry too much about actually hitting the _opponent_." He emphasized that last word as he gestured to the broken, blackened mess of a once-pristine ice battlefield. "If Abomasnow gets too close, you've got plenty of options to handle that. Hold it in place, replenish your energy, or push it back. The harder the impact, the better; just don't waste energy moving around unless you're trying to push it back, got that?"

The Continent Pokémon was admittedly curious as to how the battlefield ended up like this – it remembered how it looked when it battled here during Paul's first attempt, so it quickly gathered that its comrades did quite a number on the terrain, and there had to be a reason for that. Torterra had no desire to move around anyway; with its massive weight over ice that was badly worn down, cracked, partially melted, et cetera, one wrong move would put Torterra in a very bad place. By standing firm, Torterra could only hope the ice underneath it would withstand 700 pounds of pressure long enough for the final battle's duration.

"Then here we go!" Candice announced. "Abomasnow, use Blizzard!"

"Use Stone Edge to block it!" Blizzard was _the_ move to avoid or disrupt at all costs as far as Paul was concerned. It was the strongest of Abomasnow's Ice-type moves, but also the easiest to intercept due to how difficult it was for most Pokémon to make Blizzard hit a target accurately. Torterra summoned several small, glowing rocks that orbited around its body like the rings of Saturn (the planet – not the person). Stone Edge was undeniably the move Paul had Torterra practice the most during the ten-day training period, if its execution in the full battle against Ash was any indication. Torterra had full control of how fast or slow the rocks could go as well as which direction they went. For now, Torterra opted to use Stone Edge as a shield; a Rock-type move held up well against Blizzard. While some sharp drafts of wind and snow slipped through the barrier, Torterra resisted the urge to flinch as it felt chilled to the bone by just a fraction of that single attack.

"Very impressive," Candice complimented her challenger. "A creative way of blocking Abomasnow's Blizzard! It's almost as if you're thinking like a Coordinator, Paul!"

That comment made Paul openly cringe. Regardless of how he felt about making amends with Conway, the Pokémon Contest he was forced into would continue to give Paul nightmares for the rest of his life. Never again, he decided. "It's coincidental… nothing more."

"If you say so!" Candice conceded with a shrug. "Alright, Abomasnow, let's see if they can block your Ice Shard attack!"

"—Stone Edge, again!" Paul had to stay quick on his feet here; Candice seemed to like wedging in surprise attacks between her silly small talk. Once again, Reggie wasn't lying when he said Candice was a tough opponent.

This time, Torterra used Stone Edge as a direct counter to Ice Shard, as the floating stones ceased acting as a shield and instead flew in a steady, condensed line to collide into Abomasnow's attack well before it could reach its target. The power of both attacks appeared to be even for a moment, but eventually Stone Edge won out and triggered an explosion in the center of the field; neither Pokémon was caught up in it, at least.

"Wow," Candice uttered in genuine amazement after squinting past the quickly-receding dust cloud that came from the explosion. "I had no idea Stone Edge could be used in so many ways. Looks like as long as we've got that move to deal with, long-range attacks won't be any good." She looked to Abomasnow, who looked fine, but… "Eventually Abomasnow's gonna get worn down if it keeps using a bunch of moves that don't do any damage…"

"Abomasnow looks pretty good for a Pokémon that just took out two others," Zoey remarked; her concern matching Candice's. "But Torterra's a fresh Pokémon with a lot of stamina. If Miss Senior relies on attacks from a distance all the time, she's gonna leave Abomasnow wide open for a nasty counterattack."

"It looks like there's only one way to settle this," Candice determined. "A straight-up, all-out brawl! The best way to see whose kiai is the strongest, naturally. So, Abomasnow, let's rush 'em and use Ice Punch!"

That move was up there with Blizzard as a threat factor; Paul knew this is where his true might (as well as Torterra's) would be tested. Torterra was not built for dodging anything, so the Continent Pokémon had no choice but to take the hit. The hefty tortoise held in its pained grunt as best it could; not wanting to worry Paul more than the situation itself had already.

Shaking off the fear of losing the battle, Paul quickly called for the next move. "Crunch!"

This was easy enough for Torterra to pull off with Abomasnow being right next to it. The Frost Tree Pokémon yelped as it felt Torterra's mighty jaws clamp down on its foot. People like Ash and Paul suffered just with having their Turtwigs chomp on various parts of their bodies… but at full force, their fully-evolved brethren could bite whole limbs clean off. Obviously, this wasn't going to be the case for a much sturdier being like Abomasnow, but it was extremely painful nonetheless.

"There's no need for that, Paul," Candice teased while shaking her head. Even her Abomasnow howling in pain didn't faze her self-assured disposition. "It's not like Abomasnow's going anywhere."

"Everything we do is for a reason," an adamant Paul told her. "I'll leave it at that. Torterra, use Giga Drain!"

"Not good!" Zoey quietly exclaimed, back to keeping her commentary to herself. "Giga Drain's one of the strongest moves that saps a Pokémon's energy and converts it to energy for the user," she recalled as the large spikes on Torterra's shell glowed a bright green color – which then emitted light beams of the same color to wrap around Abomasnow, doing just as Zoey said. "Although…" the Coordinator smirked a little as she paid close attention to Abomasnow, who still seemed to be reeling from the pain of Crunch more than the current attack affecting it. "Abomasnow being part Grass-type means Giga Drain shouldn't work that well on it. If Paul's trying to get Torterra to last longer in the battle, he should've picked a better method. Man, how in the world did _this_ guy ever beat Ash?"

Paul knew Giga Drain wouldn't work very well against Abomasnow, but it was better than not having a health recovery option at all. Holding an opponent in place with Crunch and using Giga Drain to get the most out of draining its energy worked well enough on Ash's Gliscor; Paul didn't think this technique would work quite as well against Candice, but again, it was his best hope to get any worthwhile use out of Giga Drain. At times like this, Paul wished he had listened to Conway and taught Torterra Iron Head instead of Crunch…

"Well, we may be down a leg, but that's not a huge loss," Candice noted, seeming perpetually cheerful now. She was very tempted to remind Paul that his Torterra succumbed to her Abomasnow after only four hits when they first battled, but with Zoey in attendance, the Gym Leader once again remained faithful to the confidentiality agreement. One reason worthy of note for why Candice seemed so upbeat – even by her own standards – was just seeing Paul in relatively good health today. When they met, Paul seemed to be the living embodiment of the worst possible kind of misery. While he was far from a ray of sunshine today, Candice had yet to hear a nasty cough from her challenger; no signs of a fever, no exhaustion or overexertion, and best of all… no _blood_.

Though Candice was well aware that Paul was not totally healthy now (and never would be for the rest of his life), it was heartwarming to see her challenger had recovered this well… because he was that determined to battle her properly. That was all the more reason Candice had to give nothing but her absolute best for this battle.

"We still have arms, after all! Abomasnow, break out of Giga Drain and give our friend another Ice Punch!"

Since its typing hampered Giga Drain's power, Abomasnow easily ripped its arms free from the binding beams of energy and delivered another chilling blow over Torterra's massive shell. Though the Continent Pokémon lucked out and wasn't completely frozen from the attack, a layer of frost was left in Ice Punch's wake over the tip top of the shell. One of the stones protruding from Torterra's organic armor sparkled with the thin coat of ice, and the trunk of the small tree that grew over the shell was halfway engulfed in a frigid white color. Torterra couldn't bite back its groan of pain this time… its only consolation was that Paul was clearly not thinking less of his Pokémon for expressing its pain; in fact, Paul was obviously growing more concerned for Torterra. If Paul hadn't resolved to keep his mind focused on his Pokémon and the battle, he would no doubt be mentally preoccupied with hating himself for forcing Torterra into this kind of battle not once, but twice.

But Paul knew he would never win if he wasted time feeling sorry for himself. His reflex to play defensively this turn also aided his offense. "Torterra, use Stone Edge and knock Abomasnow back…!"

At point-blank range, Abomasnow had no chance of evading this attack. Rather than wasting time with fancy orbiting ring formations, Torterra rapid-fired dozens upon dozens of small (but sharp) directly into the opponent's torso. The Frost Tree Pokémon cut off its own moan of pain with another, then another after that, and so on as it was hit multiple times in rapid succession by the super-effective attack. It was forced to back away from Torterra, though it did so slowly – flinching from the pain all the while.

"Just move around it, Abomasnow!" Candice called out. "Then show 'em we mean business with Blizzard!"

Abomasnow used the ice (much of it now slushy and watery at the surface from the heat of battle amongst other things) to slide a short distance to the left of Torterra's attack, getting its much-desired reprieve from the onslaught. As it opened its mouth to unleash its wintery fury upon Torterra, Paul issued an unusual command.

"Change up!"

"Huh?" Candice was most surprised when the concentrated stream of Stone Edge actually _curved around_ and, like a boomerang, came flying right back to its target. "Ack! Abomasnow, look out!"

Abomasnow turned its head, but it was too late. Its broad, wide back was a large enough target for every rock to hit some part of the unsuspecting Pokémon. Its Blizzard was interrupted, though unfortunately not before it reached Torterra. Slowly but surely, frost was accumulating in scattered areas over Torterra's body. In turn, Torterra's own attack was cut short; the pain from the powerful Ice-type attack was just too much for Torterra to sustain.

Paul couldn't help but cringe at seeing the cosmetic damage on Torterra, knowing his starter's sturdy expression belied the excruciating pain it was going through despite only taking one full hit of damage so far. Stone Edge had done well in weakening the effectiveness of the other hits, but Candice was well on to his strategy of using Stone Edge offensively and defensively – sooner or later she would find a way around it. Even worse, Candice could afford having her Abomasnow get hit with Stone Edge more times than Paul could get by with letting Torterra get hit by most of Abomasnow's attacks.

So that left Paul with precious few options to win this fight. He knew that soon, Plan B would be his only hope for achieving victory here… but it would be risky. The sound of ice crackling under the pressure of the stationary Torterra's weight was a warning sign for Paul. With the battlefield worn and torn as it was, Paul had figured out the perfect finishing blow to this battle… but it could very easily backfire, just as the crevice did to Ursaring.

Urgent as the situation was, Paul and Torterra opted to wait… and listen. Only then would the duo know when to attack.

"Back on the offensive, Abomasnow!" Candice shouted. "Kiai power, MAXIMUM! Ram Torterra with your best Ice Punch!"

"Brace yourself!" Paul instructed his Pokémon, grimacing as he witnessed his first Pokémon stand there and let itself get bashed with another Ice Punch attack. Torterra howled in pain as Abomasnow threw itself against it, trying to push it out of the spot it had been sitting in since it was summoned, while bashing its fist against the Continent Pokémon's shell once again.

Paul clenched his fists, resisting his urge to call out for Torterra (a habit he had repressed years ago); instead he paid close attention to the details of the clash: Abomasnow was unable to budge Torterra from its spot. Very few Pokémon had the strength to manage 700 pounds of a sturdy, stubborn Pokémon like Torterra.

While that was good news for the team of Paul and Torterra, nothing was ever meant to entirely go their way. The crackling of the ice suddenly grew much louder, alerting Paul to witness a most terrible twist he had not thought was possible.

"Torterra–!"

The pressure Abomasnow applied against Torterra made the ice underneath it give way. All human beings present in the Snowpoint Gym squinted and turned away in shock – besides Paul, whose eyes were wide open as he watched his first Pokémon _sink_ under the battlefield – at least six inches or so – and while thankfully the entire area of ice had not caved in on the Continent Pokémon, all four of its legs were now deeply submerged within the increasingly unstable ice. Now Torterra really couldn't move, even if it wanted to.

"Whoa…! I've never had that happen in my gym before!" Candice exclaimed; her tone mixed with abject horror and forced optimism. "Looks pretty dangerous… Abomasnow, you'd best get out of there, post-haste!"

This time, Abomasnow opted to step back carefully rather than slide away; it was not oblivious to the horrendous mess the battlefield had become, and with Torterra's legs sunk into the ice, the rather hefty (though not nearly as much as its opponent) Abomasnow erred on the side of caution as it inched away.

"No…!" Paul growled, shaking his head. He didn't _want_ Abomasnow to get away again; with Torterra effectively stuck in the ice, Stone Edge was the only way it would be able to attack its opponent, and in a situation like this where the terrain was finally falling apart, Paul no longer wanted to add on any more damage. "Torterra, you can't let it get away! Use…!" Paul's mind rushed for a move to call… "Use Giga Drain, and drag it back!"

Torterra was far from comfortable; its legs already numb from being submerged in the ice. Black water from Honchkrow's gratuitous use of Haze and the heat of battle (among other things) melting the ice everywhere on the field started to flow into the gaps made by Torterra's legs, adding to the discomfort. Despite that, the Continent Pokémon remained firm; its shell was cold and brittle from the Ice Punches it sustained and much of its body was dusted with frost from the Blizzard attacks… but Torterra was determined to not let its trainer down. Ice was the worst kind of pain any Torterra could endure, but the pain was a constant reminder of its own trainer's pain. Paul's _constant_ pain, which would never go away… the pain Paul himself was suppressing now with all his might so that he could best utilize his Pokémon for battle. For a brief moment, Torterra looked to Paul… and though the callous teen didn't say a single word of encouragement or profess his belief in Torterra's abilities – something Ash Ketchum _always_ did – the tortoise could read Paul's true feelings just by looking at him.

Torterra knew Paul was desperate to win… it even knew Paul was feeling regret and guilt for putting his first Pokémon through this torture. It had witnessed Paul losing battles left and right for weeks on end; the nightmare finally ending when its trainer battled Ash. Torterra knew despite Paul overcoming the most difficult hurdle of his life yet, he was _afraid_. He was afraid to lose again! It was Candice who put him in his place before… Torterra understood what this battle really meant, beyond earning another badge.

This battle was about putting the past to rest. By winning this battle, Paul would know for sure he could move on. The symbolism of this battle, the inner struggle of Paul, the circumstances that were regretful yet couldn't be changed… and even Paul's attempt to rekindle his bond with Conway… even though Conway himself was hundreds of miles away from this place… all of this, Torterra knew.

And because Torterra knew the true meaning of this battle, thereby being connected to its own trainer… it brought about a frightful second wind. Torterra roared, though not out of pain – but out of _determination._

Paul was taken aback by his Pokémon's fired-up battle cry; he was even more surprised when he witnessed Torterra suddenly glowing with a strong green aura.

"Beautiful," Zoey whispered in amazement. The action of the battle had kept her quiet for a while, but she was quick to pick up on an amazing aesthetic. "But don't tell me that's…"

"… Overgrow," Paul inadvertently finished for her; completely focused on his Pokémon. It had been a long time since Torterra's ability activated in a casual battle. Unlike Chimchar/Monferno's Blaze ability, however, Paul had Torterra trained to have total control over its ability that was akin to his former Fire-type's.

With the renewed vigor and boost of power, Torterra followed through with Paul's command. The streams of energy that emerged from the frost-covered spikes of Torterra's shell suddenly grew to three times its normal size and swiftly extended out towards the still cautiously-retreating Abomasnow. The Frost Tree Pokémon soon found itself bound tightly by the energy… and moments later felt much weaker as Torterra consumed its stamina through the binds of green energy. And just as Paul instructed, the helpless Abomasnow was dragged back to its opponent.

"Hm…" For once, Candice was not so quick to make a call for her Pokémon. She finally understood the meaning of Paul's Pokémon wrecking her battlefield… and she was also aware of something else. "Overgrow can be trouble for sure," she acknowledged. "But it only triggers when Torterra's taken a lot of damage. If Abomasnow can aim the next attack just right…" Then it would be over for Torterra for certain.

Even with a power boost, Giga Drain wasn't quite as effective as it would normally be thanks to Abomasnow's typing, but it did not struggle as it was dragged by force back to Torterra. Though Abomasnow was getting worn down gradually and seemed to be getting pulled toward its doom, Abomasnow trusted Candice would make the right call to get it out of this mess.

"A gutsy move, bringing my Abomasnow right back to you," Candice told Paul with a smirk. "You still want a straight-up brawl even though your Torterra can't move? Well, I'm happy to oblige!" The Gym Leader looked to Abomasnow (now no more than a foot away from Torterra) with a confident nod. "Time for one of us to go out in a blaze of glory, Paul! Abomasnow, put everything into your last Ice Punch!"

Being so close to Torterra, and easily breaking free of Giga Drain's hold, Abomasnow's icy fist was thrust towards Torterra's head with blinding speed…

"_Frenzy Plant!"_

The strongest Grass-type move… the move that could only be learned by a starter Pokémon who was bonded with its trainer…

Torterra abruptly rose up on its hind legs, the force of which knocked back Abomasnow's Ice Punch. Its renewed strength allowed Torterra to rise; its front legs shattering the ice they had sunk in…. and for a brief moment, all in attendance at the Snowpoint Gym watched in awe of the mighty Torterra finally moving of its own accord, standing on its hind legs with its front legs dangling in the air; Torterra's head rose to let loose a vicious, nearly deafening roar.

Then it dropped back down; a rumbling thud that shook the entire facility and shattering nearing all of the blackened ice on the battlefield. Torterra summoned massive tree roots that tore through the icy battlefield like a herd of crazed wooden sharks. The roots were massive both in size and numbers due to the power boost from Overgrow, and though they indiscriminately crushed through everything in their path, their ultimate target was one and the same: Abomasnow.

There was no escape. Candice cried out her Pokémon's name, but it was too little, too late. The roots of a power-boosted Frenzy Plant came together and struck Abomasnow hard. Then they struck again… and again...

Until finally, the roots ended the onslaught by tossing Abomasnow high into the air. Paul, Candice, and Zoey looked up in awe as the Frost Tree Pokémon was tossed some twenty feet in the air like a ragdoll.

And then, the roots receded. The battlefield became even more torn than before, and shortly afterward another loud, thunderous thud echoed throughout the Snowpoint Gym: Abomasnow had landed.

That was it; that _had_ to be it. Paul only wanted Torterra to use Frenzy Plant as a finishing move because of the consequence of using the move: Torterra became immobile. The green aura still outlined the massive Pokémon, but the quadruped's audible heaving for air indicated that it was exhausted. But that didn't matter now.

Surely that was the end of it.

Right?

"Come on, Abomasnow! Get up! I know you can do it; I believe in you! No Pokémon has more passion and kiai than you…!"

_Wrong._

Abomasnow, by some unknown means, had managed to climb to its feet. By no means was it in a good condition, of course, as it wobbled and swayed whenever it tried to move. Regardless, Candice was ecstatic that her motivational words brought new life to her Pokémon. "You did it!" she cried out.

But the triumph was short-lived. Before Paul could resign himself to defeat, he and everyone else present at the scene heard yet another sharp sound of ice beginning to crack. Abomasnow was too weary to pay any mind to it.

That ended up being a costly mistake; Candice was unable to utter a word to her Pokémon before the thin, brittle ice gave way under the mighty Frost Tree Pokémon's weight. Unlike Torterra, who was stable enough to only have its feet wedged into the ice, Abomasnow fell into a much wider and deeper pit, to the point that it was barely visible to anybody. Dark water and various shards of ice fell into the hole over Abomasnow, which was gradually widening.

"Abomasnow!" Candice instinctively raced over the ice towards her Pokémon, but found herself stuck in the middle as she realized the entire field had become a hazard to anyone's safety; the Gym Leader easily could've been the next one to be a victim of thin ice.

"Miss Senior, it's not safe!" Zoey called out, worried sick for her mentor. "Get out of there!" She was beginning to hate Paul all over again; this catastrophe was _his_ fault, after all.

"I have to make sure Abomasnow's alright!" Candice replied in defiance, making more careful deliberate steps towards the largest crater made in her gym. She was especially cautious when she reached the area, peering down to see her Abomasnow quite knocked for a loop. Its eyes were swirled to signify it was no longer able to battle, but still muttered syllables of its own name to let Candice know it wasn't seriously injured. She smiled and let out a nervous chuckle once she was certain Abomasnow would be alright. She took out Abomasnow's Pokéball and nodded to Mr. Honcho; the silent gesture told the referee that the battle was over.

"Abomasnow is unable to battle," he announced. "Torterra is the winner, which makes Paul the challenger the victor!"

While Paul was visibly stunned that he had finally defeated Candice, the beaten Gym Leader smiled again, humble and noble as all Gym Leaders should be. "Abomasnow, return," she said as her trademark Pokémon was recalled back to its Pokéball to get some much needed rest. "You were amazing as always, Abomasnow. For hanging in there after taking a beating like that… I'm awful proud of you. Now rest up while I take care of business." Pocketing away her Pokéball, Candice looked to her challenger… beaming with pride and relief that Paul gave her the battle he wanted to give since the day he met her.

"You sure made a mess, Paul," Candice pointed out, looking around at her once pristine battlefield that now looked like a disaster area. "But you didn't hold back; you proved to me your kiai prowess can best mine. Congratulations, Paul!"

The victor of the battle just barely registered Candice's words.

Paul hadn't been this stunned by winning a battle since his rookie days in the Hoenn region.

But he won. Finally… _finally,_ Paul defeated Candice. The past was officially behind him now.

All that remained was a certain bespectacled friend of his, to whom Paul owed much for his victory.

Once again, Paul's mind wandered… thinking of Conway; where he was and what he was doing.

If nothing else, Paul had a new objective now besides gaining his final badge: _Conway._

* * *

Much later in the day, everyone had exited the Snowpoint Gym and assembled outside in front of it.

"Here you go, Paul: the Icicle Badge! Believe me, you earned it," Candice said, presenting a case with the small, shiny token that forever represented Paul's victory over the Snowpoint City Gym. "It's been a long wait for you, but I'm sure it was worth it."

Paul simply nodded to the Gym Leader and accepted the Icicle Badge, only taking a moment to look at this small milestone; the symbol of the end of an era for Paul, as it were, before placing it in his badge case. Only one empty spot in the case remained. "It was very much worth it. Thank you."

"You're lucky Miss Senior's easy to forgive your trespasses, Paul," Zoey muttered, obviously bitter over her dear friend losing the battle. "If you were battling me for the Icicle Badge, I sure wouldn't have given it to you. Not after you cleaned up the mess you made in the gym, at least."

"Oh, Zozo, I think you've antagonized him enough for one day," Candice chided the Coordinator. "Sure, if he messed up my battlefield for no reason like I initially thought, then yeah, I'd probably be ticked. But Paul had a reason for everything he did, just like he said to me during the battle." She looked to Paul briefly with a wink. "Besides, I think it's natural for a challenger to want to even the odds given the nature of my gym's battlefield. I doubt anyone would've made a plan as elaborate as Paul's, though! That battle was definitely far from the norm, and I mean that in a good way, of course!"

Zoey was miffed that Candice would defend Paul after everything he did, but she just rolled her eyes. "I guess… it just seemed a bit much, in my opinion."

"I hadn't completely figured it out until the battle was almost over," Candice admitted. "It was a lot to process and a lot to worry about… I like to think that was part of Paul's strategy; to overwhelm me with a lot of stuff." She looked to her young challenger. "Isn't that right?"

Paul nodded to her. He really didn't want to stay and chat, but for everything Candice had done for him since his arrival in Snowpoint City, he figured he owed it to her to heed her words of wisdom. It was nice having his plans acknowledged and respected, at least – even if part of those plans were made by his former companion.

"Well, he had Honchkrow obliterate all of the ice structures on the field to make it harder to skate around," Zoey recalled. "Then he turned the whole place black. It made things harder to see, but was that really worth all the trouble when Honchkrow could have been attacking instead?"

"The ultimate plan was to make the ice unstable," Paul spoke up. "Making everything black was part of that plan; not just to make things harder to see, but to speed up the ice melting process."

Zoey raised an eyebrow at Paul. "Ice melting process?"

"It's kind of a science thing," Candice explained. "But you should get this: Zozo, why do our neighbors here wear dark clothes when it gets really cold?"

"Because the sun's rays absorb dark colors which helps to keep people warm," Zoey answered. A moment later, she realized the connection at last. "_Oh…_ the lights in your gym are really strong, so it's like a makeshift sun…"

Candice nodded. "Exactly! With the ice blackened, combined with the heat of all the attacks throughout the battle and the impacts, Paul was able to make my whole ice field just as hazardous to me as it was for him. Sure, it won't be any fun to clean up, but for the awesome battle I just had, Zozo, it was totally worth it."

"It sure was intense," Zoey admitted. "You were really great, Miss Senior."

"And how about Paul?" the Gym Leader asked coyly.

Zoey grumbled, knowing her mentor was going to make her acknowledge her challenger's efforts regardless of how much she still disliked him. Still, by this point Zoey couldn't delude herself into believing Paul was a bad trainer or a bad person. Much as she loathed his attitude, the Coordinator sighed and decided to take the high road.

"He… was really good too," she admitted with a low grumble. "I can see why Ash wants to prove himself to this guy, at least."

"Hmph." Paul was only vaguely amused at Zoey's forced compliment. "Maybe I'd say the same for you, but I don't watch Contests. Speaking of which, shouldn't you have continued on your journey by now?"

"Sheesh, even after winning you're a huge grump," Zoey grumbled, though deep down she knew Paul had a point: she wouldn't be getting very far in her journey today due to the lengthy battle she insisted on watching. "I just wanted to see this through to the end; this'll be the last time for a while that I'll get to see Miss Senior battle, after all."

Candice smiled as she gave her friend a nice pat on the back. "It won't be the same here without you, Zozo. But I understand… you said you'd come back here as Top Coordinator, and I know that's just what'll happen. Next time you come back, you'd better be ready to party! I'll throw a huge celebration in your honor."

"Aw, you don't have to do that," Zoey said, humbly blushing at the prospect. "But I know you're the type who'll go and do it anyway no matter what I say… so I'll look forward to it, Miss Senior!"

"Good!" Candice was pleased; the great promise of her own best friend and student coming home as a Top Coordinator excited her enough to not be saddened by Zoey's imminent departure. "Now go on out there and get your last ribbon!"

"You got it!" Zoey assured her mentor, giving her a thumbs-up gesture before turning away to continue her journey. "I guess I'd better get going while it's still daylight out. Gotta find the nearest Pokémon Center outside of town; it's no picnic camping out in this area."

Candice fully agreed, especially after having seen what roughing it in the most dangerous areas of northern Sinnoh did to Paul. Keeping that in mind, she handed Zoey one of her own Pokéballs. "Just to be on the safe side, I'd like you to take my Dodrio so you can cover more ground. You can return it to me when you reach the nearest Pokémon Center, okay?"

"That's very thoughtful of you, Miss Senior," Zoey remarked, accepting Candice's Pokéball with mild hesitance. "I'll be sure to return it tonight… thank you." With that, she tossed the Pokéball and out came Candice's favored mode of transport. "You got all that, Dodrio?" Zoey asked the three-headed bird just to be sure it knew why it was suddenly in her hands.

The Triple Bird Pokémon squawked in affirmation. With nothing left to do or talk about in Snowpoint City, Zoey was quick to mount herself on Dodrio and hung on tightly. "Thanks again for the loan, Miss Senior! I'll see you around!"

"Make sure you give me a call now and then!" Candice called out as Zoey started her ride out into the big world beyond her backyard. The Gym Leader happily waved goodbye to her dear childhood friend. "And good luck…!"

Candice continued waving until Zoey and Dodrio were no longer in sight. Then, she caught Paul trying to sneak away… and of course placed a hand over his shoulder to stop him in his tracks. To this, Paul let out a quiet sigh… he was really off his game these days when it came to his usual disappearing act.

"I think we're _both_ due for a visit to the Pokémon Center," the Gym Leader proposed with a sly tone. "Don't you think?"

Having considered the brutal damage both his and her Pokémon sustained through their gym battle… Paul couldn't argue against Candice's proposal.

"You have a point," Paul calmly conceded. "Let's go." He followed Candice to the Snowpoint City Pokémon Center. Along the way, Paul felt the exchange he and Candice had was very reminiscent of another encounter he had with a very strong female trainer many months ago: the day when he foolishly challenged Cynthia, when after their short-lived, one-sided battle, the Champion of Sinnoh stopped the stubborn Paul with her calm, yet stern words… when she _insisted_ Paul to go to the Pokémon Center. On top of that, Cynthia reminded Paul that it was his responsibility as a Pokémon Trainer to give his Pokémon the care they needed… a trait Paul later learned he lacked.

But that was in the past; the past Paul had put to rest as of today. Without a single complaint or a disconcerting expression on his face, the pair of trainers made their way to the Pokémon Center.

* * *

While waiting for Nurse Joy to finish rejuvenating eight battle-worn Pokémon, Paul and Candice sat at a nearby table; both had a beverage in hand. Obviously, Candice had more than one reason to take Paul to the Pokémon Center with her. With only Nurse Joy in the vicinity (this particular one already knowing Paul's dark secret – being the first to learn of it, no less), Candice could finally say everything that was on her mind.

"Well, Paul… it's just you and me now," the Gym Leader told him. "Can I drop the act?"

Paul closed his eyes and sighed. "Yeah. No more annoying eavesdroppers are around…"

"Great!" Candice exclaimed, looking oh-so eager. "I can finally speak candidly with you!" An ingenious but corny epiphany hit her just then. "Hah! Smile, Paul! You're on Candid Candice!"

Unfortunately, Paul was not a fan of silly puns. He just stared silently at Candice, as if he was silently scolding her for her silliness.

"… Geez, you could stand to lighten up," Candice muttered before suddenly looking quite guilty for saying that. "I mean… even with your situation, it would do you good to loosen up a bit and have fun once in a while."

"You know I don't have that kind of time," Paul retorted. Although that wasn't quite true; for being terminally ill, twenty years was plenty of time to have at least a little fun. Regardless, Paul felt that wasn't the case… most likely because it had been many years since he dabbled in anything "fun".

"Let's not get into this," Candice implored. "Paul, I just wanted to say… you were right about what you said before."

"Before?" Paul blinked at her, confused.

"When you told me to forget about our previous battle, because that wasn't the true you battling me then," Candice explained. "I'm really glad I was able to battle you today… the _real_ you. And you even used the same Pokémon against me this time. It was amazing to see how your Pokémon adapted to an environment and opponents that they were really weak against. You wanted to give them all a chance to redeem themselves, didn't you?"

Normally when Gym Leaders imparted some wisdom to Paul after he defeated them, their words were easily forgotten or just generic common sense. The perpetually grumpy trainer actually felt flattered at Candice's words. "It wasn't the only reason," Paul confessed. "Ever since I defeated Byron with type disadvantages across my whole team, I felt like I had to push myself to the limit and challenge the rest of the Sinnoh Gym Leaders that way. A… friend of mine actually helped in building my strategy against you, even though we didn't know much about you back then; much less what Pokémon you'd be using."

That was a weird experience for Paul; actually saying out loud – though being vague about it – that Conway was his friend.

"That was very thoughtful of your friend," Candice noted. "So how much of that strategy actually went into play during our battle?"

"I made him build a strategy based around the four Pokémon I personally chose," Paul exposited. "He complained about it at first, naturally… but he had some really good ideas and smart choices as to which Pokémon I should use first and which Pokémon I should save for just the right moment. That much, I did follow… but my friend had no idea what your gym was like. A lot of things I did, I improvised on the spot. I'd say the tactics I used for our battle was fifty-fifty, between his advice and my own ideas." Paul looked to the side, out the large window the pair sat near. Seeing the terrain Snowpoint City was named for reminded Paul of something important.

"I guess I should be glad I fell in that snow pit the day I first arrived in Snowpoint City," Paul said rather absent-mindedly… he didn't mean to actually say that out loud.

"Hey, yeah… I remember that. That's how I met you!" Candice realized. "But talking from experience here, being a native to Snowpoint and all, it's a major pain getting caught in those pits. Why're you glad you fell in one?"

Paul managed to smile a bit. "I was about to throw my friend's strategy notes away; we're not exactly on good terms right now. Falling into the pit stopped me from doing that, because then I met you and… with the way things escalated, I forgot to throw them away."

"I see," Candice understood. "That really was fortunate for you after all. But I've got a feeling… even if you and your friend are having an issue right now, I bet he'd be proud of you for what you did today."

Paul solemnly tilted his head down, facing the table rather than Candice. "I'll let him know… if I run into him again."

"I'm sure you will," Candice assured him. "Fate or destiny will bring companions back together in some way or another; just wait and see. In any case, Paul, I gotta say I'm in awe of you."

That made Paul look up at her; obviously surprised. "What…?"

"You not only treated me to a truly great battle where your true colors shined, but you did so without your condition affecting you. You look a lot better now than you did the last few times I saw you, Paul," Candice confessed. "Whatever you're doing to suppress your symptoms, please keep it up! And please, take good care of yourself."

Paul nearly thanked Candice for her kind words, but scoffed at the end of her speech. "This must be what a mother sounds like…"

"I'm serious, Paul!" the Gym Leader shot back, indeed looking like an authoritative figure. "It's not easy for me to keep your condition a secret from everyone, _especially_ people who are near and dear to you like your brother Reggie." Her expressions softened just then. "And I want to be sure you've really changed. I mean, you have changed for the better since I last saw you, but I want to be sure you're not still totally reckless and constantly risking your life just to get some thrills. _Please_, promise me you'll take the safe way out of Snowpoint City when you leave…"

"I've already decided to do that," Paul calmly informed her, though he was visibly awkward with Candice's abundance of concern. When he passed out (and nearly passed _away_) after vomiting blood in her gym, that obviously left a serious impact on Candice. It was possibly a traumatic experience; though she was hiding it fairly well if that was the case.

Upon hearing Paul abruptly agree with her, Candice did a double-take. "You– you have?"

"Right," Paul affirmed. "I've been through a lot since I came to Snowpoint City. By now I understand why the things I did beforehand were crazy and stupid… and after all the training and battling I've done for the past couple of weeks here, I'd really welcome a rest before I move on to earn my final badge. Once my Pokémon are healed, I'm going to make some exchanges to make sure I get out of here safely. Weavile's been very helpful in getting around these areas, and Magmortar should cover the rest. Is that enough to convince you?"

Candice smiled sweetly at the young trainer. "It sure is. I guess you've got enough people in your life worrying about you… I must be annoying you with all my gabbing."

"A little," Paul honestly told her, though his tone was soft and casual. "But I appreciate what you've been telling me about the battle and how I've changed. That's what I've been trying to do ever since I was released from the hospital… it's good to know my efforts really amounted to something."

"Keep it up and you'll go so far you'll reach the stars!" Candice encouraged him. "I definitely wanna see how far you get in the Sinnoh League. But before that… if you don't mind me asking, who're you going to challenge for your eighth badge?"

Paul crossed his arms, back to his usual grim expression. "I'm challenging all the gyms Reggie beat back in his day," he explained. "He earned his seventh badge defeating Hale, your predecessor. The last badge he won in Sinnoh was the Beacon Badge, when he defeated Shakira at the Sunyshore Gym."

"Ah, right, I remember when Reggie won his Icicle Badge," Candice recalled with a giggle. "He had to beat me before he could get to challenge Hale. But I suppose you're aware that Shakira was transferred to another faraway region a few years ago, right?"

"Yeah; Sunyshore Gym's being run by a guy named Volkner now," Paul stated. "Reggie sort of knows the guy from years back. So I'll be challenging him next."

"I'll wish you good luck with that, then," Candice somewhat nervously said. "In more ways than one…"

Paul was about to ask Candice what she meant by that, but he was cut off by the trademark jingle of all Pokémon Centers ringing throughout the facility. The pair was soon after approached by the Nurse Joy of Snowpoint City – who naturally recognized Paul, being the one to confirm his diagnosis to the doctors of the hospital so that they would know what to do to save his life. In each hand, Nurse Joy carried a tray containing four Pokéballs.

"Sorry for the wait," Nurse Joy apologized. "Candice, Paul, your Pokémon are fully restored."

They both thanked Nurse Joy and took their Pokéballs. Nurse Joy smiled at Paul, also noticing his improved condition. "I'm glad to see you're doing better, Paul."

"Thanks," Paul said. "And I'm sorry I was being difficult with you when I first came here. I appreciate what you've done for me…" He looked down to Candice as he stood up from his seat. "Both of you."

"I was just doing my duty," Nurse Joy said, looking quite bashful. "All the trouble was worth seeing you looking well again; I hope you'll look this healthy for the rest of your journey. I trust you'll take good care of yourself now."

"So, is this goodbye?" Candice asked Paul, watching him step sideways to get out from behind the table.

"Once I make my exchanges, it will be," Paul answered as he headed towards the video phone station.

Paul made a point to make the call quick; Maylene was still answering for the home phone number, which meant Reggie was still on the road making his way back to Veilstone City. It wasn't just Paul's general dislike of Maylene that made the call brief; his jaw was actually getting exhausted with all of this talking he'd done today – it felt like at least three times as much as he talked on average per day. He noticed Maylene was looking more and more frantic with taking up all these extra duties for Reggie (along with some other matter Maylene tried to communicate with Paul, only to get rudely cut off), but he didn't bother asking about her. Paul got his Weavile and Magmortar in his possession, trading out Gliscor and Ursaring.

He was set to finally continue his journey.

"See you around," he softly bid Candice farewell; not facing her, he preferred to just extend a single hand out to her – the lazy, half-hearted version of a wave.

"Looking forward to it!" Candice called out to him. "Take care, and good luck…!"

Once Paul left the Pokémon Center, in what felt like no time at all, he found himself at the edge of the city limits. As he promised, Paul was taking a different route southbound; the way most trainers went. To his surprise, he felt no less "alive" by taking the mundane pathway.

Seven badges down, one to go. Sunyshore City was very far away from Snowpoint City, so Paul expected there would be several pit stops along the way… as well as some rest back home in Veilstone City. It felt like Paul had been up in the frozen north forever; he was more than ready for a change of scenery. His father was still up there, of course, still intent on rebuilding the Snowpoint Temple. Hopefully Reggie would continue his training once he returned home…

And maybe, with any luck, Paul would find out what became of Conway.

"Reggie…" Paul looked down at the long trail he had yet to travel across. "Conway…" He looked eastward, seeing the outline of the dangerous path to Snowpoint City that he took. "Candice…" Paul looked back to Snowpoint City, which was gradually becoming harder to see the further down the trail Paul went.

"… Dad…" Looking northwestward where the Snowpoint Temple was several miles away. Calling Brandon "Dad" was a first for Paul.

"… Mom." He looked up to the sky, just as he had the night after he defeated Ash at Lake Acuity.

Paul managed an earnest smile, thinking of all the people in his life that truly cared about him, helped him in his times of need, and made good company if nothing else. Traveling alone now left Paul feeling a bit empty, but…

"Thank you… all of you."

Just knowing he'd been blessed by having this many people care for him when Paul barely cared enough for himself… he no longer felt lonely.

Little did Paul know that all in good time… he would never be alone again.

* * *

**( TBC )**


End file.
